Come What May
by CalaveraCandiedSkull
Summary: "And no matter what happens, no matter how bad things get, whenever you hear it, or sing it or whistle it or hum it, then you'll know that it means that we love one another." LietPol Highschool AU. Rated for male/male relationships and touchy subjects.
1. Never Knew I Could Feel Like This

**A/N Ah! Somebody is actually reading this! I feel so loved! *Feels loved***

**Well, here it is, my awesome story of awesome proportions that has absolutely nothing to do with Prussia even though I'm saying awesome so much. What is it really about? Read on to find out!**

**Disclaimer: Hetalia belongs to Hidekaz Hiramuya. Come What May belongs to Baz Luhrman and Moulin Rouge. I own naught but my own ideas.**

**On with the show~!**

_Chapter One – Never Knew I Could Feel Like This_

Toris awoke to the sound of a song he hated blasting through the speakers of his radio. He found playing mindless sound, rather than music he actually enjoyed, gave him reason to get out of bed every morning, trudge across the room, and shut it off.

It didn't, however, make his day any better by having Bieber invade his dreams with high-pitched cries of "Baby, baby, baby, OOH!" It certainly didn't make a bright start for a Monday morning.

And thus was the morning routine of Toris Laurinaitis. Hear the music, followed by a groan, a kick of the covers, a few seconds of shuffling, the music stops, more shuffling, a thunk, and a thunk, and Toris was back on his bed and fast asleep.

15 minutes later, he's up, dressed, teeth brushed, hair brushed, eyes staring dejectedly into the coffee he has neither the will nor the energy to drink. His brothers race around the kitchen, finding last minute objects, shoving dry bagels down their throats. His mother flits about, no sign of tiredness in her bright eyes. She works a graveyard shift, and is never home before 3 am, but is always up to watch her sons go off to school, and Toris loves her for it.

He doesn't know what time his dad gets home at, because his dad doesn't live with them anymore.

15 minutes after that, he's speedwalking down the street (his bag is too heavy to allow running) to school, because he really doesn't want to be late. He has a perfect attendance record, after all.

5 minutes left, and he walks through the gym doors just as the coach's warning whistle rings.

**xXx**

The bell for lunch has rung, and Toris has retreated to a far corner of the library. His books are spread out all around him, various doodles adorning the pages. The one he is currently working on is a beautiful, twisting word, "Lietuva." Because he is Lithuanian, and thinks the whole world should know.

"What a day," he mumbled, moving his pen, gently over lines that are already there. "And it's only halfway through." First block – PE. Toris hated gym class with a passion. There was only so many times "Run faster" could be yelled at you before you snapped.

Second block was a bit better, though. World history. He can even enjoy it, when he isn't sleeping. (Apparently, having gym first block makes you really sleepy.)

But then, there is lunch. Lunch is Toris' favourite class, because he can eat, sleep, and doodle all he wants without a teacher throwing books at him.

After lunch is chemistry, followed by math. Math is stupid, but chem is okay. Bearable, depending on his lab partner.

The thought of lab partners brought an unwanted memory to the surface. His current partner transferred schools over the weekend, leaving Toris alone in the class. He groaned, and banged his head on the desk.

He was so busy trying to inflict himself harm that he didn't notice the great shadow leaning over him. "You are not looking so good, little Lithuanian," a heavy Russian-accented voice floated above his head.

Toris froze. Slowly, he raised his head to meet terrifying violet eyes staring into his.

Ivan brushed away his bangs. His smile seemed sugary-sweet, but it seeped horror into Toris' very bones. The Russian took no notice if Toris' terror and continued to talk. "I was thinking," he said, his voice so sweet it could rot teeth, "maybe we could get together and go out sometime. Have a little fun. Like in the old days, da?"

The old days. The words sank to the bottom of Toris' stomach like a lump of cold stone. He was unable to speak, could only stand there, opening and closing his mouth like a fish out of water.

The door to the library swung open with a jingle of the bell. "And then, he was like, OMG, and I was like, dude, whatever..."

A look of extreme distaste marred Ivan's face. "I'll see you around, dear Toris." Before he could think of anything to say back, Ivan was gone. He sank back into the chair; glazed eyes still wide open in fear.

Oh yes, today was shaping up to be a fantastic day.

**xXx**

Toris yawned stiffly, sitting alone at his chemistry table. He was still doodling that word. Lietuva. His teachers words fell on deaf ears, he was lost in the tangle of his own thoughts – until the teacher barked out his name.

"Laurinaitis!" His head jerked up. "Your partner's gone, isn't he?" Nod. "Alright then. Łukasiewicz! Go sit with Laurinaitis. You're partners now."

There was no suppressing the groan as Toris caught sight of his new partner. His thin, cornsilk-yellow hair fell into green eyes, glowing with a mischievous light, framed by thin eyebrows turned up into a permanent pout. Not to mention the pink t-shirt he was wearing-he looked like the kind of guy who wouldn't do any work at all.

"Kay, so, I'm like, really not good at chemistry, sooo...you're gonna, like have to do all the work."

Ah. His worst fears confirmed.

"I'm Feliks, by the way," said the boy, sliding into his chair and dropping his (pink) binder down. "Who're you?"

"Ah, um, Toris," he replied, not really sure what kind of answer to give to such a blunt question.

Feliks made a face. "Toris? What a dumb name." He spied the doodle on Toris' binder. "Lie..."

"Lietuva," Toris answered automatically. "It means Lithuania, um, in Lithuanian."

"Oh! Are you Lithuanian?" Toris nodes. "That's like, so cool! I'm Polish!"

Toris failed to see what was so cool about that, but before he could inquire about it, Feliks snapped his fingers. "That's it! From now on, I'm calling you Liet."

"What! Why?"

"Because it's A) a way cooler name than 'Toris', and B) I said so."

"But-"

"Laurinaitis! Łukasiewicz!" The teacher bellowed. They fell silent, glancing warily at each other. Toris couldn't help but feel a lump of despair curling in the pit of his stomach. He had a very, very strong feeling that this boy was going to be his complete and utter undoing.

**A/N Well, there you have it, folks. The beginning of the story. First chapters are always boring, I know, but they build the story. I hope this one was slightly interesting enough to get you hooked.**

**Spread the LietPol love! Review please~!**


	2. Like I've Never Seen the Sky Before

**A/N Oh, good gracious me! I got so many lovely reviews on the last chapter, you guys are wonderful! I was astounded so many people liked it :D**

**I realized this story is going to take another few chapters to really get started, ehe...bear with me TT_TT**

**Disclaimer: Hetalia belongs to Hidekaz Hiramuya. Come What May belongs to Baz Luhrman and Moulin Rouge. I own naught but my own ideas.**

**On with the show~!**

_Chapter Two – Like I've Never Seen the Sky Before_

As Toris slid shut his front door, he leaned against the wood, inhaling its musty pine scent. As weird as it may have sounded, there was nothing he loved more than the comfort of his house after a particularly stressful day.

He could hear his mother humming downstairs in the kitchen. Smiling, he dropped his bag and trotted down the stairs. He turned the corner to the sight of her dancing around the kitchen, something warm and delicious smelling bubbling on the stove.

Henrietta Galante was not the world's greatest cook, but she always tried her best, and the food was always good. At the sight her oldest son leaning against the wall, smiling his soft smile; she squealed and ran up to kiss him on the cheek.

Toris was not a momma's boy. Henrietta was just a very huggy type of person. And Toris let her hug.

Henrietta Galante, in fact, was only twice Toris' age. At only nineteen, she fell in love with fellow Lithuanian John Laurinaitis. A runaway marriage later, and Toris came into the picture. But they had married too soon – one affair with foreigner and Eduard was born. A divorce followed, and Henrietta, struggling, was pulled into the dark underworld of the sex and drug trade. It was a dark few years, but it all ended the day she discovered she was pregnant once again. After having Raivis, she found a job at the local gas station, started renting an old house, and pulled the pieces of her life back together again.

It was hard, sometimes, when Eduard and Raivis wondered if John was their real father as well; if the pay check wasn't enough to cover the bill, If Henrietta's old employee's ever called, looking for business. But they made it through, for their hearts were warm, and they survived on love.

Although he was in senior year, Toris didn't have a job – not that he hadn't tried, he'd just never been accepted anywhere. Eduard was an electronic whiz, and often brought home all kinds of money from odd jobs around the neighbourhood. And Henrietta was now one of the managers of her gas station – although working a night shift, she made decent money.

Toris raised his arms and hugged her back. She was the strongest person he knew, and he really loved her.

"How was your day at school?" Henrietta's cheery voice cut through Toris' thoughts. He glanced at his mom, who was gazing at him, eyes bright.

"Um, good," he answered, smiling. "I got a new partner in chemistry."

"Ooh! Is she cute?"

Toris glared. "_He_ is a guy."

Henrietta was momentarily disheartened. Momentarily. "Well? Is he cute?"

He responded with an eyeroll. "Cougar," he accused, before wandering into the living room to watch some bad quality TV.

**xXx**

_Whoever invented the Rational Zero Theorem deserves to die in my books, _Toris groaned inwardly.

Math homework. He hated it with a burning passion, because although he knew the material, the repetition of the questions was enough to melt his eyes out of their sockets.

He pulled his head up and propped it on his palm, eyes seeing the words but not really reaching his brain.

The sharp sound of a phone ringing pulled Toris out of his reverie. He dived for the phone and picked it up before the second ring.

"H-hello?"

"Toris, boy? That you?"

Relief bloomed across Toris' face in a wide grin. "Hi, Dad."

"How's your week been going?"

"Same as ever. How was your business trip?"

A content air hung around Toris as he chatted amiably with his father. He barely ever got to hear from him – a phone call once a week, asking after Toris and his brothers. It wasn't much and he never visited, but at least he kept in touch. It was more than most kids born out of a teenage pregnancy could say.

He picked up a dusty old photograph from his dresser, taken over five years ago. A much younger Toris smiled up at the camera, a taller man with short brown hair and brown eyes had him in a headlock, and was grinning at his son.

"Are your brothers there?"

Toris reluctantly said goodbye, and went downstairs to hand the phone over to Eduard. The boy tucked it in the crook of his shoulder, eyes never leaving the screen as he played his video game.

He vaguely remembered Raivis coming up to toss him his phone later on, but fatigue overcame him, and he crawled into bed with his clothes still on.

**xXx**

Toris reached chemistry the next day before Feliks did. Relieved, he pulled out his doodles and began to go over the lines of 'Lietuva' again. So lost was he in making it perfect, he didn't notice the presence that appeared behind him.

"I really like those pictures," Feliks grinned.

Toris jumped about a mile, quickly shoving her paper in his binder. "Jesus!" he yelped. Feliks grinned at him and plopped down in his chair. "Why are you so protective over your drawing?"

Toris flushed a fierce scarlet. "I-I'm not protective!" he argued. "I just don't want people to see them!"

"So, you're protective," Feliks finished. "Same diff. You, like, shouldn't be. They're really good."

The teacher began the lessons, and Toris was infinitely glad that he had the opportunity to hide his blushing face.

"...And so, by next Monday, I want the full lab including the graph handed on my desk."

As the class dissolved into quiet conversations, Feliks looked at the assignment and groaned. "Ugh. Half-lives. The freaking dumbest thing in all existence."

"I agree," Toris nodded quietly. "We should get it started as soon as possible."

"What? No!" Feliks argued. "Wait 'till Saturday. You can come over to my house; we'll have all day to do it!"

"I-'

"No arguments, Liet." Feliks snapped his fingers in Toris' face. "Saturday, my house, one o'clock. Be there or be square."

Another sigh escaped Toris' lips. "Well, fine, but if we fail, I'm blaming you."

The Polish boy looked startled for an instant, but then laughter bubbled up out of his lips. "I like you," he decided, with a cat-like grin in Toris' direction. "You have, like, _spark_."

The bell rang, and Toris was left staring as Feliks flounced off down the hall. He shook his head in slight amazement.

Spark, huh?

**A/N Holy mom, chapter two is done already! *gasps* Ugh. I don't really like the way I wrote Henrietta's past...oh well. I'll explain it better in later chapters! **

**Once again, omygosh, thank you for all your reviews, story alerts, and favourites! You guys are all wonderful. **

**See you next week~!**


	3. Want to Vanish Inside Your Kiss

**A/N I'm in love with my reviewers. Seriously. I'm like Holy Rome with his pink pillow, all spazzy and happy. **

**HOLY CRAP Word is a bitch. It took my WAY longer than necessary to type this out, because Word was screwing me over. What a bitch.**

**Happy New Year! Although it was kinda yesterday, lol. Oh well. Still, I hope everyone has a wonderfultastic year! **

**Disclaimer: Hetalia belongs to Hidekaz Hiramuya. Come What May belongs to Baz Luhrman and Moulin Rouge. I own naught but my own ideas.**

**On with the show~!**

_Chapter Three – Want to Vanish Inside Your Kiss_

The next few days seemed to pass in a flurry for Toris. After declaring his apparent like for the Lithuanian boy, Feliks had latched onto him like a co-dependent leech. He found him every day at lunch, and dragged him around the school talking at rapid speeds about nothing in particular. He followed him to his locker, talked straight through chemistry, and followed him back to his locker afterwards. It was a wonder Feliks even had a social life anymore; he'd been spending so much of his time with Toris.

Not that Toris minded though. Rather than being gratingly annoying as Toris had expected, Feliks' constant chatter was like an iPod playing in the background. And by the time Friday rolled around, Toris was finding he was actually interested in what Feliks had to say.

"So anyways, she was like, 'Excuse me? My hair is freaking _gorgeous'_ and I was like, 'Um, actually, it like, _sucks!'_ I mean, shouldn't she know not to argue with me?"

"Yeah, she really is dumb," Toris agreed, smirking a little. Indeed, if there was one thing he had learned from spending all this time with Feliks, it was that arguing with him was futile.

"Exactly!" Feliks exclaimed. "Oh my God, you know what I love about you, Liet? You agree with everything I say."

"That's because I know better than to try and argue with you," Toris giggled, and soon both boys had dissolved into mad fits of laughter. The chemistry teacher observed disapprovingly.

"So anyways," Feliks continued, "are you still coming to my house tomorrow?" Toris nodded the affirmative. Feliks grinned. "Awesome."

He wouldn't admit it for the world, but Toris was actually nervous about going to Feliks' house. The prospect of going into a nice neighbourhood made him feel uncomfortable, it always had. And from what he could gather, Feliks definitely lived in a nice neighbourhood.

Little did he know that the boy sitting next to him was just as nervous as him. He'd never actually had a friend in his house before, he was too afraid they'd discover his secret. Although he didn't think Toris would react as bad as _that_ person did...

"Hey, Feliks? You awake?" Toris waved his hand in front of Feliks' face. "You're all spaced out."

"Huh? Oh," Feliks blinked. "Yeah. Just tired." He smiled. "But I'll be like, totally awake tomorrow, so don't worry!"

They packed up their stuff as the bell rang. Chatting animatedly away, Feliks didn't seem a little tired to Toris. _Oh well,_ he thought, _I guess he was just thinking._

About what, though, was what Toris wanted to know.

**xXx**

Toris sat in the window seat of the shuttle bus, watching the rain run in rivets down the glass, half-seeing the pretty suburban houses flash by him. His binder was clutched tightly between his fingers, knuckles whitened under the pressure. Toris was nervous, yes, more nervous than he'd been in a long time.

He glanced down at the paper in his hands. _117 Cardinal Way, _it read, the _i _dotted with a little heart. It was just so Feliks that Toris couldn't help the smile that crawled onto his lips.

The bus ground to a halt. Toris jerked out of his reverie, realizing this was his stop. He jumped off the last step, hastily pulling up his hood to protect his hair from the downpour. He made a mad dash to the end of the street, glancing up at the sign. 'Cardinal Way', it read. Perfect.

The street was small, packed tight with cozy two-floor houses. The lawns, although currently drenched, were green and full. It was obvious that anyone who loved here had a lot of money.

He found the correct house easily – somehow, the frilly pink curtains in the window were a perfect indicator. He was a little hesitant to knock, however; his hand hovered precariously over the wood.

Just as he was about to knock, the door was flung open and Toris went face-first into a flying hug. "Liet!" the ever-familiar voice squealed. "You totally came!"

Toris extracted himself from Feliks' embrace, a light blush dusting his cheeks. "Of course I came," he said, "the project is due in two days."

"Right," Feliks replied, looking a little embarrassed. "Well, don't be shy! Come on in!"

Toris wandered into the hall, sliding off his shoes and listening to Feliks prattle on. "My mom isn't gonna be home till like, 5:00, 'cause she's out shopping, so we have the whole place to ourselves, yay!" He grabbed Toris' arm and dragged him up the stairs. "Come see my room!"

It was no surprise to Toris that Feliks' room was bright pink. A mahogany-carved desk stood on one side, beside it a dresser overflowing with clothes. On the other side of the room sat a bed covered in pink blankets, pillows, and stuffed ponies. Posters of classic Disney princesses adorned the walls.

It was all so feminine that Toris had to blink.

"D' you like it?" Feliks flounced in behind him and flopped down on the bed, several ponies falling off the side.

Toris looked around the room again, taking it all in, then turned back to the blond's eagerly grinning face, and smiled gently. "It really reminds me of you."

"So you like it?"

Toris sighed. "Yes, Feliks. Now let's get this lab started."

Feliks grinned wider, and jumped down beside him.

They settled into a comfortable silence, working quietly. Much to Toris' surprise, Feliks actually did a fair portion of the work, as long as Toris told him what to do. They talked a little bit, but mostly they just worked quietly, and in an hour and a half they were 100% done.

"Awesome!" Feliks pumped his fist in the air. "I've like, never done a project that fast before! I guess you're good luck, huh?"

"Yeah," murmured Toris, a faint blush dusting his cheeks from the compliment.

Instead of going straight home like he planned, Toris ended up being talked into staying and watching a movie, _Clueless._ Judging by the way Feliks could quote every moment of the movie, Toris guessed he had seen in multiple times.

When the credits began to roll, Toris enquired as to where the bathroom was. "Down the hall, first door on the left," Feliks replied, eyes glued to the screen.

He wandered down the hall, listening to Feliks rewinding the movie to watch the last scene again. The bathroom door was slightly ajar, Toris nudged through and flipped on the lights.

After relieving himself, his eyes wandered and found something strange. A red, pleated skirt sitting in the laundry hamper.

_Strange, _Toris thought, _Feliks doesn't have a sister, and that looks a little young for his mom to be wearing._

After a little more snooping, Toris had discovered multiple hair clips, a straightener, a curling iron, several makeup cases, and a really girly-looking hairbrush. For all Toris could tell, he was standing in the bathroom of a teenage girl.

He stepped out of the bathroom, feeling a little shaky. He was sure that none of that stuff belonged to Feliks' mom, but...it couldn't possibly belong to Feliks!

Could it?

He could hear the blond back in his bedroom, singing the song from the credits. "_Tenderness, where is the tenderness, where is it_.."

He turned and looked back at Toris as he entered the room. "Hey," he said, "did you find the bathroom?"

Toris nodded wordlessly. His eyes were fixated on Feliks' closet. _If he has a dresser overflowing with clothes, _he mused, _why does he have a closet?_

"Feliks?"

"Yeah?"

"What's in this closet?"

The room fell into a blanket of silence, the two pairs of eyes locked on each other, the one in wary suspicion, the other a deer caught in headlights.

Feliks broke away first. "Nothing that's, like, anything important," he mumbled, staring at his feet.

Toris blinked, and before he knew what he was doing, he had knelt down in front of Feliks, taking his face in his hands . "Feliks." The blond raised his eyes. "You can tell me anything, you know."

Feliks gulped, and swayed a little closer. Toris felt his heart beat a little faster. _What am I doing?_ He thought wildly, eyelids dropping half a centimetre.

A distinct thump came from downstairs, along with a muffled cry of "_Feliks! I'm home!_" The blond jerked his head back, jumped to his feet and dashed to the door. "Mom's home!"

Leaving Toris staring at the wall, wondering what the _hell_ just happened.

**xXx**

"Thank you for driving me home, Mrs Łukasiewicz," Toris mumbled, bowing his head.

"It's no problem! And call me Emma," Feliks' mom replied, smiling jovially in the front seat.

Emma Łukasiewicz was a wonderful lady, with blond hair in an elegant twist-up and blue eyes that sparkled whenever she talked. After inviting Toris to stay for dinner, she settled down with them to watch Mean Girls. Apparently, she shared Feliks' love for chick flicks.

"Wow, Liet. This is your street?" Said blond gaped, pressing his nose against the glass. Steam formed where he breathed, slightly fogging his vision.

"Yeah," Toris nodded, "and...this is my house." Emma rolled the car over to the curb and stopped, and he reached for the door handle. Before he could get out, however, Feliks launched himself across the backseat and wrapped him in a mind-blowingly tight bear hug.

"Thanks for coming, Liet," he murmured, and Toris felt his breath warm on his ear. He turned the most vivid shade of scarlet you could possibly imagine.

"Um, yeah. No problem," he stammered, fumbling with the door handle. "I'll s-see you at school!" He dashed down the steps, glancing up again at Feliks, who waved energetically from behind the window, before slamming the door shut.

Emma glanced back at her soon, a sly look on her face. "You like him, don't you?" She said, smiling slightly. Feliks merely grinned ear to ear.

Toris leaned against the wood of his door, taking a few deep breaths and inhaling its familiar, safe scent; he then dropped his bag stomped up to his room. He vaguely heard his mom call up to him, vaguely heard himself answer back, but once the door to his room slammed shut, he threw himself on the bed and the battle turned inwards.

_I like him_, he thought, covering his ears with his fists and screaming silently into his pillow. _Shit. I like him._

**A/N Wow, I think that's the longest chapter I've ever written. Is that sad? I think that's sad. I'd love to be one of those authors who can write like 10k words for one chapter. Although, I think I'd die in the middle of typing it.**

**Once again, I'd love it if you could drop a review! But if you're too busy I understand. *gives puppy dog face* Please?**

**See you next week~!**


	4. Everyday I Love You More and More

**A/N Holy shit guys. School is a bitch. Gah. I'm SO bugged down with homework this weekend, I shouldn't even be writing this. But I am, 'cause I love you, and your reviews for last chapter gave me warm fuzzies **

**In other (better) news, I saw Tangled! Twice now, actually, so...yay me! It's actually a very cute movie; you should ALL go watch it. Disney's getting back on the right track, you know.**

**Disclaimer: Hetalia belongs to Hidekaz Hiramuya. Come What May belongs to Baz Luhrman and Moulin Rouge. I own naught but my own ideas.**

**On with the show~!**

_Chapter 4 – Everyday I Love You More and More_

Toris did not want to go to chemistry.

He was hidden in a far corner of the library, away from where Feliks or anyone could find him. It was cowardly, maybe, to be hiding from his feelings. But Toris was a coward, and right now, Feliks scared him.

He had gotten very little sleep last night, and even less the night before. What little sleep he did manage to grab was fraught with restless, waking dreams, which resulted in one very tired, very stressed Toris.

And now, he was hiding from the very person who made his nights so sleepless. Luckily, Feliks had not yet come to find him. In fact, Toris hadn't seen the blond Polish boy all day. _I wonder if he's sick,_ Toris mused._ I hope he's all right. Maybe he isn't here today. Maybe he transferred schools. Maybe I'll never see him again. Maybe-_

Toris broke through his increasingly frantic thoughts, mentally slapping himself. "Cut it out," he murmured aloud. He didn't revolve around Feliks. Hell, he'd only known him for a week! How on Earth was he able to sit here, moaning and groaning to himself that he might just be falling in-

"Liet!"

The shout ripped through Toris' thoughts and sent a scarlet blush flying straight to his cheeks. "F-Feliks!" He stuttered. "I didn't know you were here today!"

"Psh." Feliks looked confused. "As if. Why, did you think I was sick?"

"I-I-" Toris really didn't know how to reply. It was almost as if Feliks didn't remember what has transpired at his house that day. As if Toris hadn't knelt down beside him, touched his face, close enough that if one of them had moved even slightly forward-

"Of course not." He cleared his throat. "I don't know what I was thinking." The bell for the end of lunch rang, and he turned away. "Let's go to class."

Feliks rolled his eyes at Toris' weirdness, but followed anyways.

"So why were you hiding in a corner?"

"I was hiding from you."

"Seriously?"

"Seriously."

"Lieeeet! That's, like, so meeeaan!"

Laughing, they entered the class, Toris' fear of his impeding crush forgotten for the moment.

**xXx**

When Henrietta Galante got home from her annual monthly shopping spree, she was met with two sights she was used to, and one she wasn't. Eduard was playing video games, as per usual. Raivis was doing his homework and breaking the lead from pressing on his pencil too hard. Nothing strange about that.

No. What was weird was the sight of her eldest son Toris banging his head repeatedly against the wood of the kitchen table.

"Toris?" She gasped, and flew over to him. "Honey, what's wrong?"

He glanced up at her, groaned, and let his head fall back on the desk with a loud _thunk. _

"What?" She slid into the seat beside him and rubbed his back comfortingly. "Girl troubles?"

"No," Toris replied, sighing. "Well, kind of."

She raised an eyebrow. "Kind of? Honey, tell me everything."

Toris hesitated, then hung his head. Much as he wanted to open up to his mother about it all, and he _really_ needed someone to talk to, he knew he couldn't put this burden on her. So he put his hand on her shoulder, and smiled." It's really nothing. Just high school drama. Nothing to fret over."

Henrietta ran her eyes over him. "Well, okay," she said. "But if you ever need to talk, you know I'm here, right?"

He smiled and kissed her forehead. "I know," he whispered softly.

**xXx**

Once in his room, Toris slid down the door and put his head in his hands. He needed to figure this out. What he felt with Feliks – well, he'd never felt anything like it before to compare it to. The butterflies in his stomach, the nervous excitement whenever Feliks talked, the constant blushing, and inability to take his mind off him – it all sounded like something out of a teen romance novel! And what was worse, Toris wondered, thinking that this was all in his head – or that his feelings were real. And _what_ would Feliks do if he knew what Toris was thinking?

But the way Feliks' face had felt in his hands, the smoothness of his skin, those ash-blond lashes closing slowly over endless pools of green, the memories wouldn't, no, couldn't leave his head...

Shit. He _really _needed to figure this out.

He grabbed the phone off the hook, and began rummaging through his schoolbag for that crumples sheet of paper with the pink pen and the hastily scribbled phone number.

Fingers shaking, he dialled, and pressed the phone to his ear.

"Like, hi! Feliks speaking!"

"Oh, good, Feliks! You picked up!" Toris sighed in slight relief, and resumed his spot on the floor.

"Liet? Like, OMG! Hi!" As per usual, the animated chatter of the blond flooded through Toris' ears in a comforting stream of words. Although tinny, it caused the worry in Toris' heart to ease just a little.

"Yeah," he smiled. This was it. He had to know the truth about himself. And this conversation was going to tell him everything he needed to know.

Now if only he knew what to say.

"So, like, what did ya call for?"

"I, uh, I need to talk to you."

"Yeah? About what?"

"I...think I like someone."

"What? Omygosh, and you called me to talk about it? Aww, thanks Liet! So, like, who is she?"

"I'm...not telling."

"Grr, fine! What's she like?"

"Well, uh..."

"_What's her naaaaame, what's she liiiiike, does she know that you'll never treat her riiiiight?"_

"Feliks, shut up."

He could literally hear Feliks pouting over the phone. "The why did you even call me in the first place?"

Toris sighed. "Well, I'm not actually sure if I..._like_ this person, per se. I can't tell if it's just a friend thing or not. I need your advice."

"Alright, _fine,"_ said Feliks in a teenage drama-queen voice. "I _suppose_ I could lend my totally fabulicious advice to you. Tell me everything!"

Their conversation eased into comfortable chatter, as Toris described what he had been feeling to Feliks (Oh, the dramatic irony) and the other boy listened, making noise in all the appropriate moments. And even though his heart was beating a little faster than normal, Toris found that the butterflies in his stomach were actually becoming quite a pleasant sensation.

"Isn't it obvious, Liet?" said Feliks, once he was done. "You're in love."

Toris felt his heart skip a beat. "You-you think so?"

Feliks sighed. "Oh, Toris. I know so. You are displaying, like, ALL the symptoms."

His head was starting to spin a little. He, Toris? In love? With _Feliks?_ And despite his apprehension, was he...was he actually _enjoying_ the idea?

So lost in his own thoughts, and the little smile beginning to twist on his face, Toris never noticed the other end of the line get silent.

Because if he'd known how much agony Feliks was in at that moment, he would have said something for sure.

"Do you _really_ think so?" Toris finally said again, his voice getting soft and quiet.

"Well, yeah! It's like a total duh!" If he was paying more attention, he would have noticed how fake it sounded. "Now all you have to do is _tell _her how you feel!"

"I dunno, Feliks," Toris said. "I'm pretty sure...that person would reject me."

There was silence for a moment on the phone. Feliks voice came through, sounding rather strangled, as though he was fighting to say something. "Liet. _No one _in their right mind would reject you."

Toris felt his heart stop. "Feliks? Are you-"

"And besides!" The cheery, familiar voice was back. "If she says no, you can always have me!"

_Click._

Toris allowed the phone drop freely from his hand, after hitting 'end call.' The butterflies were back, and in full force, as he put his hands on his head and fought back frustrated tears.

Well, it was official, anyways. He liked Feliks a lot more than he realized.

**xXx**

The next morning in gym, Toris was not paying any attention at all to what he was doing. This was in fact the third time he had missed the turn, ran in a straight line, and gone face first into the wall. The coach yelled in his general direction, Toris paid him no heed. His mind was elsewhere.

_If she says no, you can always have me._

Those were the words Feliks had spoken with such carelessness last night. The words that were now serving to drive Toris up the wall with worry and fear.

In talking to Feliks, he had solved one dilemma, but had opened up two. Because Feliks was such a flighty person, it could very well be that he hadn't meant a word of what he'd said, leaving Toris wondering if he'd just received a confession or not. And thus he was presented with another dilemma. Should he tell Feliks how he felt? If what he said on the phone was true, then Toris wanted nothing more that to shout it to the heavens, and sweep Feliks off his feet. But, on the other hand, if Feliks was only joking, not only would it embarrass Toris to no end, it would probably ruin their friendship for good.

Toris groaned as he jogged along. _Ugh, this is all so messed up!_ He raged internally. _If only Feliks were here, I could straighten things out, and-_

"Hey, Liet!"

Toris promptly slipped and fell flat on his face.

"Ouch," he groaned as Feliks dissolved into giggles. "You're face is sooo funny right now!"

Rubbing his head, and internally cursing his blushing face, Toris made his way over to where Feliks was standing. "What are you doing here? Don't you have class?"

He puffed out his cheeks. "Well, I wanted to see you, Liet! I wanna talk about that girl you like. Are you gonna tell her today?"

Toris sighed. "Maybe. Listen, Feliks, this isn't really the time. Can we...talk at lunch?"

"Like, okay." Feliks was still smiling, but something about it felt a little off. Was it just his imagination, or was that a spark of jealousy on Feliks' face?

"Lunchtime. Be there. Seeya!" Feliks snapped in Toris' face, before flouncing off down the hall. Toris blinked a few times, smiling softly. It didn't matter how stressful the conversation was, talking to Feliks made him feel better. Still rubbing his head, he turned around – straight into the chest of Ivan Braginski.

He gasped and stumbled back. "Ivan! I-what-what are you-"

"Who was that you are talking to, dear Toris?" The Russian loomed over him, his aura sending chills down Toris' spine, and not in a good way. The very marrow of his bones seemed to freeze. "I would really like to meet him, da?"

His breath was becoming ice in his throat. "St-stay away from him!" He managed to choke out.

Ivan cocked his head. "Why? You are not afraid I'll tell him about..." he leaned in closer. "..._us, _are you?"

A weak, gasping noise made its way out of Toris' throat. No, no no no no no, this was not happening, this was not...happening...

"See, I would very much like to make _us_ happen again, da?" Ivan turned his cold, violet eyes to the hallway Feliks had walked down. "I don't like it when other people talk to my Toris, you know. I might have to..." he turned back to Toris. "...see about him."

Laughing, he poked Toris on the nose, and walked away. Down the hallway Feliks had walked down. Towards Feliks. Ivan was going towards Feliks.

Toris barely managed to walk a few steps, knees shaking violently. His thoughts were on one thing only. _Feliks,_ he thought._ I have to get to Feliks._

But before he could even leave the gym, his knees buckled and he gave way in a dead faint, Ivan's laughter echoing in his head, one word on his lips.

"Feliks..."

**A/N He fainted.**

**...Well shit, Liet. What are you gonna do NOW!**

**Hey. Guys wanna hear something awesome? This is the longest chapter I've ever written. It's even longer than my one-shots, haha. I feel tired now...**

**So yeah. All of you should watch Tangled. And Clueless, because really, Feliks is so much like the main character it makes me laugh. He kinda might start saying her lines if I'm not careful when I write...eek...**

**Speaking of eek, I hate driving. I'm only an L. And I'm like, the biggest fail of a driver in the whole world. I'm never gonna pass that damn N test next summer...**

**Anyhow...**

**Oh yeah, the song Feliks was singing on the phone was Ghost by Fefe Dobson. But you all knew that...right?**

**Review? :D**


	5. Listen To My Heart, Can You Hear it Sing

**A/N Hey guys, how's it going...**

**I am so tired...**

**Did you know that while I write this story, I have a huge goofy grin on my face? Yeah. That's why I have to be careful where I am when jotting down my ideas – people will start to think I'm crazy...**

**Speaking of huge goofy grins, may I just say that I have the best reviewers in the WORLD! Seriously, guys. Its like, that feeling you get when you ace a test you didn't know you would. Y'know?**

**Anywhosies, I suppose I should get on with the chapter...you all probably want to know what happened...**

**Does anyone even read these author's notes?**

**Disclaimer: Hetalia belongs to Hidekaz Hiramuya. Come What May belongs to Baz Luhrman and Moulin Rouge. I own naught but my own ideas.**

**On with the show~!**

_Chapter Five – Listen To My Heart, Can You Hear it Sing_

The first thing Toris became aware of was the faint, muffled sound of someone humming. It was a pleasant tune, he decided, and so he kept on listening for a little more.

After a minute, he felt a little more awake, so he opened his eyes. They fluttered slightly as a harsh light above him hit his line of vision.

"Liet? Omygosh! You're awake!" He was promptly squished by a very energetic bear hug. "I totally thought you were dead! What the heck happened? I mean, I _know _what happened, the gym coach told me, but like, I totally didn't know you could faint from stuff like that-"

"Feliks!" Toris waved his hands. "I'm fine! But it would be better if you could get off me, please..."

"Oh." Feliks flushed and sat back. "Like, sorry."

Toris slowly sat up, groaning slightly. "Okay. Now tell me what happened. _Slowly._"

He nodded. "Well, like, the coach said you fainted from dehydration. Oh!" He jumped up. "That's right! You have to drink something!"

As Feliks rummaged through his bag, Toris wracked his memory for any information about what had happened after he fainted. There had been something troubling him, he just knew it, but what?

A water bottle was shoved into his hands. Toris looked at it, and drank gratefully. The water cooled his throat (he hadn't even noticed it was burning) and relieved his headache. Sighing, he lay back down, glancing up at Feliks. The blond smiled at him. Toris closed his eyes slowly, smiling back -

Ivan.

He shot up like a bullet, grabbing his friend by the shoulders. "Feliks! Are you alright? What did Ivan do, I swear, if he did anything-"

"Liet! Liet! _Liet!_ I'm _fine_! It's you we should be worrying about! And who's Ivan?"

Toris stared at him. "You mean – he didn't-"

Feliks shook his head, thoroughly perplexed. "Um, no...?"

Toris let out a great sigh of relief, and without thinking, flung his arms around his friend's thin shoulders.

Feliks felt his eyes open wide, and a blush crawl over his face. "Um, not that I'm not totally happy with the appreciated but totally unexpected hug, um...what's it for?"

Toris merely smiled. "Thank goodness," he whispered. "Thank goodness."

They stayed like that for a few moments, before Toris pulled back, blushing heavily. Feliks raised his eyebrows, looking only slightly less frazzled. They both glanced down, not meeting each other's eyes. _Well, this is sufficiently awkward,_ Toris thought, rubbing the back of his neck.

They both jumped when the bell rang.

Toris glanced down at watch, and realized he wasn't wearing it. "What bell was that?"

"The one for the end of lunch."

He started. "_What?_ I've been out for that long?" His eyes widened. "You mean I've missed World History!"

"Yup," said, Feliks, examining his nails.

"Well, come on!" Toris grabbed him by the wrist. "We're gonna be late for chem!"

Dragging him up the stairs, Toris dashed towards the stairs, Feliks trailing behind him. "O-oi! Liet! Like, wait up!"

**xXx**

They sat outside the classroom, both internally grumbling about teachers having no sympathy and stupid late policies.

Toris glanced sideways. Feliks was pouting, fiddling with the ends of his hair. His free hand loosely clutched his binder, his legs flat against the floor, ready to trip anyone who walked by. Toris noted with a slight smirk that his shoes were pointy-toed.

"So did you really stay with me for two and a half blocks? That's about three hours, you know."

Feliks blushed and began fiddling with his sleeves. "Well, _someone_ had to be there when you woke up."

Toris couldn't help the affectionate smile that curled on his lips. Leaning to the side, he rested his head on Feliks' shoulder. "Thanks," he murmured, tingling a little as Feliks shifted to lay his head on top of Toris'.

They stayed like that for several minutes, just taking in the peace and serenity of the moment. Toris could feel the heat of Feliks' body radiating through the sleeve of his sweater.

"Hey, Liet?"

Toris made a noise of acknowledgement, eyes still closed.

"If...if you found out something about me, something bad, would you...would you hate me?" Feliks bit his lip.

"Hate you?" Toris sat up. "_Hate_ you? Feliks, I could never hate you. I..."

His voice died out as his eyes locked on to the others'. For a moment, it seemed as though the entire Earth was standing still. This was just as it had happened last time, faces so close to each other...

_Only this time_, thought Toris, _this time, something might actually happen_.

For a moment, he panicked. This was school! Anyone could see them! What the hell was he thinking?

But at the same time, he couldn't seem to pull himself away.

"Liet, I..." Feliks began, but Toris placed a finger to his lips, silencing him.

"I have something to tell you, too," he whispered.

The classroom door slid open, and the teacher came out, crossing his arms and glaring at them. "Time is up," he said roughly. "Get back in here."

They stayed for a moment, eyes locked on each other, before Feliks stood up and walked into class. Toris heaved a sigh, and got up to follow.

The teacher held out a hand to stop him. "Laurinaitis," he said. Toris raised his eyebrows. "There, there isn't anything..." he cleared his throat. "You don't..._need _any...er..."

He blinked. "No," he said. "I'm fine." And he went to go sit beside Feliks.

The teacher shook his head and closed the door. He wasn't sure exactly what he'd walked in on, or what the Laurinaitis kid was hiding, but he was sure going to keep a close eye on them from now on.

**xXx**

Toris blinked at the piece of paper being shoved into his face. "And what is this?"

Feliks grinned. "Happy Tuesday! I was planning to give it to you at lunch, but...you kinda fainted."

"Well, that's a shame. Stupid me." Toris plucked the paper out of Feliks' hands. _Formal invitation to come over to my house after school for a totally awesome much-needed power session! _It read. "Power session?"

Feliks grinned. "You have to tell that girl you like her! And you don't seem too sure of yourself, so I think you could, like, really use some pow-ah!" He punched his fist in the air.

Toris started. That's right – Feliks still thought he liked someone else. _He must be so blind, _Toris mused. _Either that or I've just got a skill for lying_.

He groaned, and banged his head against the locker. "Do I really need a power session?"

The blond puffed out his cheeks. "Yes."

"Why, though?"

"'Cause I like, SAID so!" Feliks smacked him. "Meet me at the bus stop after school, kaythanksBYE!" He flounced off down the hall.

Toris sighed. Of all the people in the world he could have fallen in love with, it had to be a bossy, whiney little princess.

_Ah, well, _he thought, heading towards the math room. _At least going to his house should be interesting._

**xXx**

"Yay! You came!"

Toris held his arms up in defense as Feliks pounced on him. "Of course I came, dummy. You told me to."

"Oh, Liet, I just love you," Feliks declared, linking his arm through Toris'. "Wanna know why?"

"W-why?" Even though he _knew_ Feliks was only joking around, Toris couldn't help it. He blushed.

"'Cause you like, always do what I say." The blond jumped as the bus came into view. "Oh good! It's here! Anyways, like, people usually never listen to what I say. It, like, totally pisses me off." He jumped on the first step.

"I wonder why," Toris mumbled, as he stepped onto the bus behind him.

"Hm?"

"Nothing. Hey, what happened to all those friends you had before you met me? I never see them anymore."

They sat down simultaneously. "Oh, them? Well, they weren't my friends for very long to begin with. See, I never usually keep friends for a long time – they all, like, think I'm annoying." He grinned. "That's why I like you, Liet. It seems like I can to anything and you won't hate me for it."

Toris looked determinedly at the seat in front of him. _I won't blush, _he thought_, I won't. _"I told you before, I could never hate you."

Feliks looked at him, biting his lip, fighting back a smile.

Toris jumped as a headphone was shoved into his ear. "What are you – AGH!" He shrieked, as the music came through ear-rupturing-ly loud.

"Oh, sorry," Feliks giggled. "I like my music loud."

"Yeah," said Toris, massaging his ear. "I can tell."

They settled into comfortable silence, a slightly toned-down Lady Gaga pulsating in their ears.

**xXx**

"I didn't have any friends at all," Toris said, as he and Feliks hopped off the bus.

"Huh?"

"Before we started hanging out, I didn't have any real close friends."

"Oh." Feliks blinked. "So I guess that means I'm your first best friend, right?"

Toris smiled. "Yeah. Cool, huh?"

He listened contentedly to Feliks chatter as they ambled down the street to Feliks' house. Dimming out the words to a steady background noise, he allowed his mind to wander, back to what happened earlier that day.

He'd come to a conclusion – Feliks did like him. Whether or not he knew how Toris felt about _him_ was still debatable. So it boiled down to one thing – he absolutely had to tell Feliks the truth._ You know he likes you, you know he'll say yes,_ his mind argued. _Just man up and do it!_

Unfortunately, Toris had never been one to say what was really on his mind. And his earlier encounter with Ivan was preying on his mind as well. It was obvious now that Ivan was just trying to scare him (and oh, how he'd succeeded) but if Toris and Feliks really did take the next step in their relationship, would he perhaps get angry and try something? He knew Ivan would never truly, physically hurt him, but he wasn't so sure the same went for Feliks.

Toris shook his head. Enough about Ivan. He didn't dictate Toris' life, not anymore. What really mattered, what he should be thinking about now, was what exactly Feliks was trying to hide from him.

"_If...if you found out something about me, something bad, would you...would you hate me?"_

What could Feliks possibly be hiding from him that he was afraid people would hate him?

Could it...could it possibly have something to do with that skirt Toris found?

That's right – Toris had practically forgotten about it with the excitement of the last few days. He wracked his brain. What kind of secret involved women's clothing? Wait – Feliks wasn't a _girl_, was he? _No, _Toris thought._ I may not be the most observant person ever, but I think I would have noticed if my own best friend was a girl._

But then, it couldn't possibly be...

Could it?

"Hey, Liet?" Fingers snapped in front of his face, jerking him to reality. "You are, like, so spaced!"

"Huh - oh," he blinked. "Um, s-sorry. Lost in thought." They had made it all the way to Feliks' front door, he noted.

Feliks pouted. "And you, like, weren't listening to me?"

"No, I was," Toris reassured him. Well, it was sort of true.

His face split into a smile. "Course you were. Why wouldn't you be?" Humming to himself, he skipped inside.

Toris sighed as he followed suit. He really had been semi-listening to Feliks – something about totally rude guys at checkout counters and fierce, sparkly pink heels.

Realizing Feliks had already disappeared up into his room, Toris started up the stairs.

Upon entering the bedroom, Toris' eyes found Feliks standing in front of his closet door, hand resting on the handle. His earlier mood had all but disappeared, leaving behind one very still, very quiet Feliks.

Toris wasn't going to lie. He was a little afraid. "Feliks...?"

"Liet..." his voice was disturbingly quiet. "You know, we're really good friends, right?

Toris gulped. "Of course, Feliks."

"And I totally trust you, yeah?"

"I trust you too." Toris was getting more nervous each passing second.

"Then I have something I need to tell you."

And he swung the door open.

Toris hesitantly walked in after him. There was no light in the closet, but it seemed nice, from what he could make of it. Spacious. Feliks reached up and flicked a switch. Light flooded the room, illuminating every single piece of clothing.

And that was when Toris' jaw hit the floor.

The entire closet was full of girl's clothing. Flowers, flounces, skirts, dresses, high heels. In the corner, a floor-length, pink ball gown hung, strapless and sparkling.

Toris looked at Feliks. The blond had his eyes cast downward, a dead sort of resignation in them. "You, like, have to tell that girl you like her, and, um... I just, like, didn't want to have to lie to you anymore, Liet."

"Was this it?" Toris asked, his voice cracking a little. "Is this the...the something bad?"

"Yeah." There was a hint of tears in Feliks' voice. "I...I cross-dress."

The words seemed to hang in the air after Feliks spoke them. Toris turned back the clothes. So this was it. The answer to it all – why Feliks was so feminine, why he never kept his friends for very long, why he thought Toris would hate him.

"Feliks."

The blond gave a sniffle.

"I think...I may have known this all along."

Feliks inhaled slightly, tears spilling over and falling freely down his cheeks.

"And, I think...that would look really good in that dress."

Feliks whimpered. "Liet!" He wailed, throwing his arms around him.

Toris wrapped his arms tight around the blond's shaking shoulders. "You were right, Feliks. I do have to tell that person I like them."

Feliks shook his head violently against his shoulder. "No! You can't! I - I like you, Liet!"

Toris smiled, tears escaping his own eyes. "I know," he said, voice cracking. "That's why I have to tell you, I like you too, Feliks."

He pulled back, and looked at Feliks. He had tears streaming down his face, eyes wide open. "Lieeeet! Why didn't you, like, _tell_ me!"

"Well," he answered, holding back dry laughter. "I was afraid you'd hate me."

Feliks half snorted, half sobbed. "I guess we're both, like, totally stupid, then."

Toris nodded. An idea hit him. "Hey Feliks," he said. "Could you...show me one of these outfits?"

Feliks pulled back sharply, dumbfounded. His eyes searched Toris' face for any kind of lie. Then his face broke into a watery smile. "Yes!" he cried. "Like, totally! Of course!" He paused, and looked Toris directly in the eyes. "Liet?"

Toris didn't know it was possible for a smile to be as wide as his was at that moment. "Yes?"

Feliks kissed him softly. "Thank you."

**A/N D'awwww...**

**These chapters are getting longer and longer...**

**Please, feel free to drop by and review! *hopeful smile* :)**


	6. Telling Me to Give You Everything

**A/N Oh, I was so glad to hear that a few people read my author's notes...**

**Oh, my God, everyone, I am SO sorry I didn't update yesterday! I was sick with a really really bad headache and didn't even turn on my computer DX But now I'm back to updating every Sunday, I promise!**

**Anyways, enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: Hetalia belongs to Hidekaz Hiramuya. Come What May belongs to Baz Luhrman and Moulin Rouge. I own naught but my own ideas.**

**On with the show~!**

_Chapter Six – Telling Me to Give You Everything_

Toris was sitting on Feliks' couch, waiting for his...boyfriend?...to come downstairs. His lips were still tingling from where Feliks had kissed him.

A knot of excitement twisted in his stomach. He couldn't believe it – they were actually together! He smiled as he mouthed the word. _Together. _A couple.

Forcing his thoughts _away_ from Feliks, Toris observed his current situation. Feliks' mom wasn't home – yet – and Toris wondered if they were going to tell her about them. Moreover, he wondered if he was going to tell his own mother.

Would she be cool with it? Henrietta was a very open woman, so perhaps she wouldn't care. But he hadn't told her about...last time...and he wondered how she would react to him being, well, gay.

The thought hit Toris like a tidal wave. _That's right, _he thought_. I guess this means I'm gay now._

But did it? Would it have mattered if Feliks was a girl? Maybe, just maybe, it didn't matter what your sexual orientation was, who you loved was who loved. Gender irregardless.

His lips started tingling again, and he touched them, smiling slightly. He remembered how good it had felt, how _right _it had felt. _Yes, _he thought_. That's it._

One of the stairs creaked. Ah. So Feliks was still a little nervous to show Toris the truth, huh?

_Cross-dressing_, he thought. _I should have known_. It seemed so obvious to him now! All the signs pointed to it, how could he not have seen it?

But maybe, it was because it was so obvious, that Toris hadn't seen it. Maybe that was why no one saw it – because it was obvious.

Another stair creaked, and this time Toris looked up. Feliks was standing at the top of the staircase, fidgeting and chewing on his bottom lip. His fingers fiddled with the hem of his miniskirt.

Toris stood up and walked to the bottom of the stairs, eyes never leaving Feliks. His mouth hung slightly ajar in awe.

The miniskirt was the same one Toris had seen, red and pleated. His tank top was white, with spaghetti straps and sequins adorning the edge. He was also wearing knee-high socks, and Toris suspected if he'd needed shoes, they would be red high tops. In his hair were several hair clips, all of them sparkling. And on his lips was the finest coat of lip gloss.

He looked utterly, completely, perfectly beautiful. And he looked more like himself than Toris had ever seen.

"As I suspected," Toris grinned. "You look like Feliks."

Feliks' head shot up, glaring. "Liet! What is that supposed to mean!"

Toris rolled his eyes. "It means you look pretty. Now get down here!"

"Yay!" Feliks dashed down the stairs two at a time, and launched himself at Toris, who caught him and swung him around twice. "Oof!" He danced forward, swinging his hips. "Look at me, Liet! Don't I look pretty?"

Toris chuckled. "Didn't I tell you that already?" Feliks was still dancing. "I get the feeling you don't get to do this in front of many people, do you?"

Feliks snickered. "Yes, Liet. Because, like, I'm totally going to go to school wearing this."

They smiled at each other. The kiss came flooding back into Toris' memory, and he blushed self-consciously, looking down at his feet.

"Hmm?" Feliks observed him. Was Liet...was he still nervous? A devious smirk crawled over his face, and he slunk towards the blushing boy.

Toris jerked his head up as he felt two arms sliding along his shoulders. Feliks leaned up against him, a twisted little smirk on his face. "Am I, like, making you blush?" he teased softly, curling a strand of Toris' hair around his finger.

Toris yelped and jumped away. "J-j-jeez, Feliks, you're pretty confident for someone who was just crying about this not ten minutes ago."

Feliks pouted. "Well, I've gotten over it! Like, I never get to do this in front of people." He tugged on his shirt. "I feel kinda sexy."

Toris could feel the heat emanating from his face. _Feel kinda sexy? You _look_ kinda sexy._

As if reading his mind, Feliks came towards Toris again. "And what about you?" he asked. "Do _you_ think I'm sexy?"

His face answered for him. He didn't get a chance to reply, because Feliks had pounced; covering his lips in a kiss and tumbling them both back onto the conveniently placed couch.

Feliks pulled back, looking down, a tender look in his eyes. Toris lay beneath him, flushed, lips swollen, eyes sparkling. His breath was heavy and uneven, a knee pushed upwards between his thighs. "Feliks..."

He was beautiful. Feliks shivered, burying his face onto Toris' neck and inhaling. "You have, like, no idea how long I've wanted to do that."

Toris reached up his arms, and encircled them around Feliks' waist. "A week and a half," he said teasingly.

Feliks scrunched up his nose. "Meanie," he grumbled. Their eyes locked, and the smiled dropped off their faces.

Toris moved his hand to stroke it across Feliks' porcelain-smooth cheek. "Are you..." he could barely choke the words out. "Are we really going to do this? I mean, everyone at the school is going to know, and I don't know how my family will react-"

"Liet?"

"...Yeah?"

"Like, shut up." And to further add to his statement, Feliks leaned down and covered Toris' lips with his own.

**xXx**

When Emma Łukasiewicz came home that day, she was not expecting anything out of the ordinary. Well, okay, with Feliks as a son, she was never completely off her guard – she'd once come home to him determined to learn how to belly dance – but seeing as today had been a fairly average day at work, she wasn't expecting much to change when she got home.

But when she walked into her living room to see Feliks and Toris lying on the couch, looking a little more than comfortable with Feliks wearing a skirt, the idea that today – if not the rest of the week - would be normal was thrown out the window.

Feliks noticed her first. "Mom!" He shouted happily, bounding off the couch (and kneeing Toris somewhere unmentionable in the process) "Oops, sorry Liet – Mom! Mommommommommommom!"

She gasped a little as Feliks flew at her, catching his flying hug. "Ouch! Hi, hon, how was your day?"

"Awesome! Omygosh, it was like, the best day EVER!" Feliks twirled on the spot. "Wanna wanna wanna know why?"

"I'm guessing it has something to do with our friend Toris over there." She smirked, and pointed at the fidgeting and blushing boy.

Toris had stood up as soon as the effects of Feliks' little kick had worn off. Now, worrying and fretting, he waited as two pairs of eyes raked over him from top to bottom.

He suddenly became aware of them whispering.

"Does he know about-"

"Yes, Mom, he _knows-_"

"-and what about-"

"-Mom, its cool, I-"

He only caught a few snippets, but what he heard didn't sound too good.

But then, Emma smiled at him, and all his worries were lost to the wind.

**xXx**

They stood outside Toris' door, prolonging the moment of separation for as long as possible.

"So, I'll see you in school tomorrow?" Toris said, making no move to remove his arms from Feliks' shoulders.

"Mhmm," Feliks replied, making no move to unwrap his arms from around Toris' waist.

Emma tapped her fingers against the steering wheel impatiently.

They kissed again. Then Feliks dashed back up the stairs to his car.

Toris smiled and watched them drive off, something warm and fuzzy pooling in his stomach. Oh, the feeling of being loved by Feliks, it was so much different, so much _better _than...

He opened the door and wandered in. Downstairs, his mother was making a cup of coffee. He plunked down at the table, staring love-struck at the wall.

_I can't believe that just happened, _he thought, unable to wipe the huge, goofy grin off his face. _I just can't believe I'm that lucky._

He came out of his reverie to see his mom, glaring daggers at him from across the table.

Toris jumped. He attempted to smile at her. "...hi?"

"_Toris Laurinaitis!_" She shouted, slamming her palms against the table. "Where have you been!"

Toris flinched. "I was at Feliks' house!"

"And couldn't be bothered to call me?"

_Shit. _He'd been so wrapped up in being with Feliks he'd completely forgotten to let his mom know where he was. "I'm sorry Mom, I just lost track of time, I-"

"It's 7:00! How do you lose track of _four hours!" _She sighed, and rubbed her temples. "Okay. Do you know that you're in the wrong here?"

"Yes Mom, and it'll never happen again, I swear!"

"And you were at Feliks' house?"

"Yes."

She sat down, and seemed to deflate a little. "Well, alright. I'm glad you're making friends. But CALL me next time."

"Yes Mom. I will promise."

She sighed, and yawned. "Okay, well, I promised Ed and Raivis I'd play GTA with them before bed, and I have to get to work in half an hour, so night hon."

"Night, Mom." He kissed her on the forehead, and began to walk up to his room. _My mom can play Grand Theft Auto?_

As he headed up the stairs, the phone began to ring. He made to answer it, but a sudden realization made his heart plummet into his stomach.

His dad. Oh, shit, shit shit shit shit shit, his dad. Toris had never been able to hide anything from his father. John would know something was up. What would he do? Toris _had_ to make sure his dad didn't find out, he just had to.

The phone was still ringing.

Heart beating 30 miles per minute, Toris picked it up with shaking fingers. "H-hello?"

"_Hello, I'm looking for Henrietta Galante, does she still live here? I have a job offer for her..."_

Toris' whole face hardened. That voice, he knew that voice all too well.

"Go die, you scumbag. She doesn't work for you anymore," he growled at Henrietta's former employer, before hanging up the phone.

Anger boiled his blood as he stomped up the stairs. That bastard, who did he think he was, calling here again? The last time he'd called, they'd threatened him away with a lawsuit for sexual harassment.

_Of course, a perfect day had to be ruined,_ he thought, glaring at the phone in his room. Because now, not only was he angry, he was also thinking about his dad.

John called once a week – and he hadn't called at all yet. Which meant Toris was expecting a call soon. And when he did call, Toris was going to have to tell him about Feliks. There was just no way could he lie to his father.

The phone rang.

Toris jumped a mile in the air. Racing towards the phone, he picked it up in an instant. "Hello?"

"_Toris, m' boy!"_

"Dad!" Toris broke out in a cold sweat as his heart rate sped up. "Dad, I'm so glad you called – I have something I need to tell you, and I can't tell anyone else, and neither can you, especially Mom-"

"Whoa, whoa. Slow down!" John sounded like he was laughing. "You know you can tell me anything, boy. What, is it about a girl?"

"Kind of.." Toris rubbed his eyes. "I-Dad, I-"

"Spit it out, boy. " John said gruffly.

"I...have a ...I have a boyfriend."

Silence fell over the room, as the reality of Toris' words began to sink in. _I have a boyfriend, _he thought_, and he's perfect and lovely and I really, really like him, so I hope you approve Dad-_

"Dad?"

_Click._

The other end of the phone was dead. _What? _"Dad?' he tried again, to no avail. His father had hung up on him.

Tears began to form in his eyes. Oh God. Oh _God. _They spilled over his cheeks hitting the phone and splashing on his hand. Twitching, he tossed the phone across the room, and buried his face in his knees.

He remembered, sometime later, running out of tears and climbing into bed fully dressed. Somehow, it felt like his own father hating him was just the beginning of the million hardships that came with dating another boy.

**A/N Sigh. So sad.**

**...I typed that all in one sitting...my finger are numb...**

**Review? :D**


	7. Seasons May Change, Winter to Spring

**A/N Oh, my, over 70 reviews? I must say, I am so honoured that so many people like my story :3 You people. You're all the best. *pokes everyone on the nose* You're the best!**

**Grr, I didn't have time this week to pre-write this. It's all straight from my brain onto the computer, so it might be bad...I'm sorry!**

**Disclaimer: Hetalia belongs to Hidekaz Hiramuya. Come What May belongs to Baz Luhrman and Moulin Rouge. I own naught but my own ideas.**

**On with the show~!**

_Chapter Seven – Seasons May Change, Winter to Spring_

He was staring at his plate, willing the food to look more appealing than it actually was. Even though he constantly told himself that breakfast was the most important meal of the day, today Toris simply could not find the stomach to eat.

His mother watched him from across the table, absentmindedly stirring her coffee. There was something odd about Toris, she decided. Something had happened between when he got home yesterday to when he got up this morning that had made him go from sublimely happy to severely depressed.

The loud thunk of Raivis tripping on the carpet jerked Toris out of his reverie. Blinking rapidly, he piled his untouched plate on the counter and shuffled towards the stairs.

Henrietta beat him to the door. Placing both hands on his shoulders, she look straight into his eyes. "Toris," she asked forcefully. "Are you alright?"

He looked down, avoiding her gaze by staring at his feet. "Yeah," he said unconvincingly. "I'm fine." He sidestepped her to step out the door.

She watched him go, to worry clear in her eyes. Yes, there was something odd about Toris. And she wanted to know why.

**xXx**

"Laurinaitis! You're ten minutes late!" the coach barked the second Toris wandered in through the gym doors. He waved off the angry man and trudged into the change room.

As he sat on the bench, willing his muscles to cooperate and change, he heard a few whispers from outside the door.

"...have you heard..."

"...fuckin' fag..."

His head shot up, blood rushing to his face instantly. _W...what? _Oh no. No no no no this couldn't happen. People, how did they find out, no no no! Fingers clenched in the fabric of his pants. _Shit. Feliks._

Grabbing his bag, he snuck out the back of the change room, silently moving down the hallway and out the door to the field out back.

Hidden from view of anyone in the school, Toris curled up in a corner and forced himself to breathe. Okay. So. His gym class knew about him and Feliks, which meant it wouldn't be long before the whole school knew, and there was nothing he could to stop the rumour from circulating.

He could drop out of school. Yes. That was an easy solution!

Ah, but who was he kidding! Toris wasn't brave enough to do something as daring as dropping out of school!

"Liet?"

He looked up slowly to see Feliks, tentatively standing a few feet away from him. "I, like, couldn't find you, I was totally worried..." he took a deep breath. "Liet, everybody knows about us, but – but I didn't say anything, I swear! I never, like, told a single thing to anybody, Liet!"

"Feliks!" Toris raised his hand. "Come here."

Feliks bit his lip and sat down beside him. Toris wrapped his arms around his shoulders. "I know you didn't tell anyone," he murmured into his hair. "I believe you." He hugged him tighter. "Do they know about you?"

Feliks shook his head. "No," he sniffled, and Toris realized with a start that he was crying. "Nobody knows about that yet."

"Good," Toris sighed, and raised Feliks' face, wiping the tears off with his thumbs. "Now, stop your crying. It's not all over yet."

Feliks smiled a little, and curled his fingers around Toris' hand. "Hey, Liet? Can we just, like, not go to school today? Please?"

Toris sighed, and put his head on Feliks' shoulder. "Yes. That sounds like a wonderful idea."

Their heads rose, and their lips met softly. For a moment, Toris contemplated telling Feliks about what happened with his father. But then, Feliks slipped his tongue into the kiss, and Toris forgot about everything.

**xXx**

They sat on Feliks' couch again, the smaller boy curled up against Toris' chest. They had both already called the school, unable to mask their giggles as they imitated their own parents. Now, halfway through the day, they were watching another chick flick and Toris found himself rather enjoying it.

...even if Feliks was mouthing along to every word.

Halfway through, Toris nudged him slightly. "Hey, Feliks?"

"What?" he mumbled, not moving.

"Is it really okay for me to stay here tonight?"

"Yes." Feliks sat up. "Just call your mom when school is about to be over, and tell her. My mom isn't gonna have a problem with it."

Toris sighed. "What about tomorrow?"

Feliks blinked. "What about tomorrow?"

"Well, are we going to go to school?"

"Of course we are!" Feliks jumped off the couch, and pumped his fist in the air. "We're gonna walk through those doors and show the school just how awesome we are!"

Toris laughed. "Okay, okay. I get it. We'll go."

Feliks' grin was bright enough to light up the whole room. "I love you, Liet."

Toris blinked, blood rushing to his face. A smile grew on his face, and he covered it, blushing wildly. "I love you too, Feliks."

**xXx**

They lay side-by-side in the darkness, hands intertwined. The canopy on Feliks' bed covered them in soft pink light. Toris watched the boy beside him, smiling at the way his face twisted in a pout as he slept. _Oh, Feliks, _he thought affectionately_. You're such a diva._

His mom had declared it great that he was sleeping over at a friend's house for the first time, and was eternally glad that he called her. Feliks' mom was overjoyed that he was staying over. Apparently, she had no problems at all with the fact that they were dating, and even let them sleep in the same bed.

Now, clad in nothing but one of Feliks' T-shirts and his boxers, Toris watched the face of his love. He had been, actually, for the past hour. He'd been doing it for so long, in fact, that he hadn't noticed Feliks' eyes open.

"Liet?"

He jerked awake. "F-Feliks! Ah, I thought you were sleeping!"

"Like, I was," he grumbled. "And then my dreams were totally interrupted by the feeling of somebody staring at me!"

"Oh." Toris rubbed the back of his neck. "Sorry."

Feliks leaned forward and cuddled against him. "S'okay," he murmured. "Mmm, you smell good, Liet."

He blushed. "Thanks."

Feliks raised his eyes. "And? Don't _I_ smell good?"

Toris rolled his eyes and broke into a grin. "Yes, Feliks. You smell very good."

Feliks grinned back at his and buried his face into the fabric if his T-shirt. "Plus, my shirt looks totally hot on you," he said, voice muffled.

The next few minutes were passed with nothing but gentle touches and sweet words whispered into ears, smiles on faces and muffled giggles, trying not to wake up the woman sleeping next door. Fingers intertwined, lips so close that when they moved, they touched lightly, Feliks and Toris declared their love a thousand times over.

"Um, hey, Feliks?"

"Yeah?" the boy had practically fallen asleep again, but he opened his eyes anyway.

"Do you...live with your father?"

Feliks' whole face seemed to fall, and he rolled over. "Like, no."

Toris gulped, and backtracked instantly. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have pried, you-"

Feliks rolled back. "Liet, it's okay. It's just..." he sighed. "Please don't ask about him. I'm not..."

"I get it." Toris took his hand. "I know. You can tell me when you're ready."

Feliks smiled, and leaned over to kiss him. "Thanks. 'Night, Liet."

"Goodnight, Feliks." Toris pulled his arms around the blond and pulled him in tight. Feliks curled up, fingers gently clutching the front of his shirt.

_You can tell me about your father when you're ready, Feliks_, he thought gently,_ and I'll do the same. I hope you understand._

And so they slept, nightmares chased off by the warmth of each other's presence.

**xXx**

But all sweet dreams come to an end, and theirs did, the following morning as they sat in the car.

"Feliks, I can't do this," Toris moaned as he stared out through the tinted glass. "I can't."

"Yes, you can!" Feliks cried, grabbing his hand. "I'll be here for you the whole time, Liet. We can totally do this."

Toris sighed, and looked down. "If you don't do it now, then you'll never be able to," said Feliks' mother from the front seat.

Feliks nodded. "Like, come on, Liet. Let's go."

Toris squeezed his hand, and looked up. "All right," he said. "Let's go."

Feliks smiled, and kissed him. The he opened the door and they both stepped out into the bright, late spring sunshine.

**A/N Dun dun dun!**

**Yeah. Short chapter is much shorter than usual.**

**Stay tuned next time for the reaction of the general public! And don't forget -**

**Review!**


	8. But I Love You, Until The End Of Time

**A/N Holy bleep on a bleep sandwich. Guys! You're the best people in the whole world! I love all of you so much~~~! **

**I can't help it now – every time I look at somebody else's story I can't help but compare my amount of reviews to theirs. Its mean, I know, but I like bragging TT_TT**

**But yeah. 80 reviews. Damn you guys rock my world.**

**Disclaimer: Hetalia belongs to Hidekaz Hiramuya. Come What May belongs to Baz Luhrman and Moulin Rouge. I own naught but my own ideas.**

**On with the show~!**

_Chapter Eight – But I Love You, Until the End Of Time_

Toris' hand was swearing profusely. Feliks squeezed it reassuringly. They could feel a thousand pairs of eyes on them as they walked across the courtyard. Whispers, both curious and harsh, filtered around them.

_It's like a scene form a movie_, he thought_. All eyes are on us._

Feliks leaned into him. "I feel like a star!" he whispered excitedly.

"Yeah, but for the wrong reasons," Toris hissed back, warily watching the spectators.

"Like, whatever," Feliks rolled his eyes. "This school needs a little more excitement, anyways."

They both looked up to see the principal, arms folded and glaring at them from the front door. Glancing at each other, they slowed to a stop.

"Problem, sir?" Feliks raised his eyebrows. The principal's eyes narrowed further.

"Feliks Łukasiewicz. I should have known you'd turn out like this." He turned to Toris. "But you, Laurinaitis. What are you doing here?"

"Trying to go to school, sir," Toris replied, flashing him a smile.

His face contorted, and turned purple as an eggplant. "Why-you-" he spluttered.

The bell rang. Felling a surge of empowerment, and elevated by his success, Toris turned to Feliks. "I'll see you at lunch, okay?" And he leaned in and kissed him.

He could have sworn the principal might have fallen over if he hadn't already been leaning against the railing. Feliks looked surprised, but sublimely happy as Toris pulled away. He nodded, and waved as Toris headed off in the other direction.

Feeling about a thousand feet tall, Toris strode towards the gym doors and smirked in the faces of a few jocks that stared at him as he passed.

_Oh, Feliks_, he thought giddily_. What have you done to me?_

**xXx**

Lunch came sooner than Toris expected, and it came in the form of Feliks flying down the hallway at top speed. "Lieeeet!"

He turned just in time to catch him. "OUCH! Jeez, Feliks, why do you always have to – mmphf..." His sentence was cut off by a pair of lips on his own.

"Mmm..." Toris couldn't help smiling as they pulled apart. "What was that for?"

Feliks grinned. "You were so totally sexy this morning, and I felt so awesome through, like, all my classes!" He twirled on the spot. "Plus, like, everyone is staring at us. I love it."

Indeed, a small ring of people had gathered around them, surreptitiously trying to sneak glances at them, and being very obvious about it.

Toris snorted. "They act like they've never seen anybody kiss before."

Feliks giggled. "They probably haven't!"

Laughing and intertwining their fingers, they strode away from the gaping crowd.

As they walked aimlessly around the schools borders, Toris' mind began to wander. Feliks was chattering away, and he wondered if the blond ever knew he wasn't listening one hundred per cent. _He probably_ _does_, Toris mused, _but I don't think he cares._

And so, his mind traveled. Mostly, it revolved around Feliks, but for a moment it jumped to Ivan. It was strange – whenever he was with Feliks, Ivan didn't seem like such a threat. In fact, Toris had barely given him a second thought since Tuesday.

No, Ivan had all but slipped from his mind. There was only room for one thing on his mind, and that was Feliks.

Said blond had suddenly disappeared from his side. Blinking, he turned this way and that until he located him standing on a boulder in the middle of a creek.

"Feliks?" he called. "What are you doing there? That's off school property!"

"Oh, no!" Feliks replied, clapping his hands to his cheeks. "I guess you'll just have to come and save me, Liet!"

Rolling his eyes, Toris jogged down to the edge of the creek. "Okay," he said, outstretching his arm. "Take my hand!"

Feliks took it, and for a moment Toris felt that usual flutter in his stomach. Then the grip around his hand tightened, and he felt himself being pulled upwards.

"Agh!" he shrieked, clutching at Feliks for dear life. "F-F-F-Feliks!"

Underneath him, he could feel the other laughing. "Like, re-_lax _Liet! It's just water!"

Slowly, Toris unlatched himself and eyed their surroundings. The boulder they were standing on was fairly wide and flat, they were both able to stand on it quite easily. The sunlight filtered in through the treetops, and the creek tinkled lightly and musically.

All in all, it was _incredibly_ romantic.

He looked back at Feliks, who was smiling widely, eyes shining. "Isn't it, like, beautiful?" he asked breathlessly.

Unbidden, their lips met. Toris snaked his arms around Feliks' waist, while the other laced his fingers through his hair. Pulling their bodies flush against each other, Feliks let out a soft moan and deepened the kiss.

The sound of something clicking made Toris jerk his head upwards. He looked around, but saw no one. Feliks cocked his head. "What?" he pouted, obviously upset about the abrupt halt in kissing. Toris scanned the area once more. His eyes picked out a flash of white.

"Who's there?" he called.

Feliks took his arm. "Like, I didn't see anything." When he got no response, he stomped his foot. "Lieeet! C'mooon!"

Toris turned back. "Sorry," he sighed.

"You're such a worrywart." Feliks bit his lip and stood up on tiptoe to kiss Toris on the forehead. "Stop, like, _worrying_ so much!"

"Feliks." Toris raised his eyebrows. "You don't worry at all. If _I_ stopped worrying, both of us would die."

Laughing, they began to kiss again, unable to wipe the smiles off their faces and unheeding of the sound of a shutter clicking in the background.

**xXx**

"Why are you so excited?" Toris enquired, watching Feliks skip down the hall in amusement.

"We have a class together!" Feliks sang. "I'm, like, super excited!"

The door to chemistry was looming closer with every step they took. Feliks may have been excited, but Toris was incredibly nervous. Their teacher had walked in on them once before, Toris remembered, and he hadn't seemed too sympathetic to their cause. What should them being official make it any different?

They swung open the door and made their way to their desk. Immediately, the class quieted, the focus of the room was now on Toris and Feliks; the former slouched in his seat, the latter grinning wildly.

After a few moments of whispers and double takes, their teacher stomped into the room. Glaring at all of them before settling in his desk, his eyes narrowed on the two in front of him. "You two," he said gruffly. "Split."

The grin fell from Feliks' face. "What?" he shrieked, standing up.

"You heard me," he growled. "Split."

Toris' heart sank into his stomach. In the morning, the initial shock of seeing them together was enough to keep everyone quiet. But, as several rude snickers made their way across the room, Toris realized that time had now come to pass.

Neither of the two of them had moved yet, and the teacher's face contorted into a snarl. "MOVE!" he screamed. Toris jumped, and he and Feliks scrambled to get their things together.

As Toris sat down beside his new partner, she scooted away from him, making sure nothing of hers touched anything of his. Biting his lips, he felt an uncontrollable urge to put his head in his hands and cry.

**xXx**

His locker wasn't opening. He growled, and tried it again. Still no luck. In anger, he kicked it, the loud clang of metal echoing throughout the empty hallway.

"You, like, really shouldn't kick lockers, you know."

Toris looked up to see Feliks smiling sadly at him. "Hey."

"Hi." Toris looked back down, a flush of shame colouring his cheeks. Feliks came towards him, and took his face in his hands.

They pressed their foreheads together, and Toris had to smile. No one was there to see them; the classrooms were empty, school had ended long ago. They had made it through unscathed.

"I told you we could do it," Feliks whispered.

They started off down the hall. Toris didn't want to leave Feliks' side, but he hadn't been home since yesterday morning, and needed to check in with his family. "But I'll see you tomorrow," he finished, pulling Feliks into a one-armed hug.

An idea lit up Feliks' face." Oh my God, Liet. I just had like the best idea _ever!"_

"What?"

"We should totally, like, go to that place with all the roller coasters this weekend!"

Toris raised his eyebrows. "You mean the amusement park?"

Feliks rolled his eyes. "Yes, whatever! We should go together!"

"Like, as in a date?"

"Yeah! Like a supermegafoxyawesomehot date!"

Toris contemplated it. He had to admit, the idea had its merit. The image of them on a roller coaster together flooded his mind; Feliks clinging to him for dear life, them laughing and sharing cotton candy, kissing on the top of the Ferris wheel...

"Y-yeah. Let's go."

Feliks clapped his hands. "Yay! Okay, let's go on Saturday!"

"Saturday?" Feliks had already missed two of his buses. If they waited any longer...

Feliks seemed to notice as well. "Yes! Come get me! I gotta go, see you tomorrow, love you, bye!" He dashed off towards the last bus, but not before planting a kiss on his cheek.

Toris raised a hand in farewell. "Love you, too," he whispered.

**xXx**

When he walked through the door, the scent of something baking hit him hard. "Mom?" he called out warily. When he heard no reply, he headed cautiously down into the kitchen.

She was conked out on the table, sleeping next to large plate of chocolate chip cookies. Smiling, he grabbed one and brushed the hair out if her eyes. "Hi, Mom," he said quietly.

As he watched her, he realized there were a hundred things he wanted to tell her. About her employer who called, about school, about Dad, about Feliks...about Ivan...but the look on her face was so peaceful and content, he didn't want to disturb it. Turning away, he let her sleep.

Besides. He had an upcoming date to stress about.

**A/N Tired...so tired...**

**Supermegafoxyawesomehot doesn't belong to me. It belongs to Team Starkid, the very light of my existence.**

**See you all next Sunday! Review, please~!**


	9. The World Seems Such a Perfect Place

**A/N Ugh...I don't feel good...been sick all week...urgh...**

**Sorry about no update last week. I haven't been on my computer all week; yesterday was the first time I've been on since last Saturday. So, be prepared for lots of spelling errors. I'll go fix them all later...**

**Oh yeah, but we cracked a hundred reviews. I love you all. Damn, I have the best reviewers in the world.**

**Disclaimer: Hetalia belongs to Hidekaz Hiramuya. Come What May belongs to Baz Luhrman and Moulin Rouge. I own naught but my own ideas.**

**On with the show~!**

_Chapter Nine – Suddenly the World Seems Such A Perfect Place_

He stood in front of the mirror, staring at himself in a way he never thought possible. Did his hair look alright? Was he wearing the right kind of clothes? Did he look too casual? Did he look too dressed up? After all, they were only going to the amusement park, not some major fancy dinner date.

It was simple attire – jeans that weren't tight, but not baggy either; a black shirt with silver graphics, and a black hoodie. His hair was held back with an elastic band. On his feet were his plain old dirty sneakers. He made a face at them. He didn't like them, but since he had no others, they would have to do.

And now it was time to go, pick Feliks up, and go on their first real date.

If only he could force his feet to move.

_Damn it, _he cursed internally_. It shouldn't be this hard anymore._

But then, he'd never really been on a date with Feliks. Sure, they'd spent plenty of time together, but it was always at school or at Feliks' house. The amount of things that could go wrong today – it was sending Toris' brain into worry-wart overdrive.

"Toris? Are you leaving soon?" The voice echoed up the stairs, and he cringed. His mom had agreed to lend him the car for the day, but she didn't know exactly what he needed it for.

"Yeah! Yes! I'm leaving now!" He dashed down the stairs, tripping over his shoelace. "Ow!"

"Where are you going in such a hurry?"

Toris glared up at Eduard, who was sitting on the stairs, playing his Game Boy. "What's it to you?"

Eduard raised his eyebrows. "There've been all kinds of rumours going around the school," he said. "Do you know anything about them?"

Toris flushed. "N-never you m-mind about those!" he stuttered, picking himself up off the ground. "Don't listen to rumours, got it? Now. Goodbye!" And he slammed the door in Ed's bemused face.

This might have been a lot more affective if he hadn't had to come back in a second later to grab the car keys. "Shut it."

**xXx**

"_Feliks! Toris is at the door!"_

He could hear Emma yelling through the wall. He grinned slightly as Feliks' whine followed after. "_Mo-om! I can't just open it; I have to make him wait a while!"_

There were a few seconds of silence, and Emma opened the door. "Hi, Toris. He'll be just a couple of minutes, come on in."

Thanking her, he stepped inside. Upstairs, he could hear some music pulsating – some peppy, upbeat song that was no doubt one of Feliks' favourites.

Smiling a little to himself, he turned his attention to the photographs taped up on the wall beside the door. Most of them were of Feliks and his mom, grinning, or posing like supermodels. He laughed at one of them in particular, of them at a movie theatre, pretending to kiss a poster of Johnny Depp.

He suddenly noticed that, in most of the pictures, Feliks was again wearing girls clothing. If he'd even bothered to look, if anyone bothered to look, they could have found out about Feliks' cross dressing in a second.

Another picture caught his eye, this one a little off to the side. There was a man in the picture, one Toris had never seen before. Feliks looked really young in it, maybe six or seven. _Could it be... is that his father?_

It was strange... he looked oddly familiar...

"Liet~!" The voice floated down the stairs. "I'm like, totally ready~!"

He turned, and his jaw dropped. Feliks had really gone all-out, in a blue minidress, brown jacket and suede boots, and black tights. His hair had blue bobbles in it, and his lashes were coated with mascara. He looked, in short, like a model on a runway.

And if Toris hadn't been paying close enough attention, he might have even mistaken him for a girl.

"Well? What's the verdict?" Feliks twirled on the spot.

"Wow," Toris stated. "Feliks, you look... amazing!" he pulled the other close, and kissed him. "But, I am a little worried."

Feliks' face immediately dropped. "What? Why?"

"Because some other boys might try and take you away from me."

The blond broke out in a genuine smile. "They can try, but, it'll never work." He leaned in close. "I like you, like, way too much," he whispered seductively.

"Have fun, you two," Emma teased, leaning up against the wall beside them. Feliks jumped a mile in the air.

"Mom! Don't do that!" he pouted. "You, like, totally scared me."

She just rolled her eyes and chuckled. Feliks made a face. "Come on, Liet, let's go!"

Toris was about to follow him out the door, when he felt a hand on his shoulder. Turning, he came face-to-face with Emma.

"I haven't thanked you yet, have I?"

Toris blinked, bewildered. "Um, no?"

She smiled, and he was startled to see tears in her eyes. "Feliks..." she began. Her breath hitched in her throat, but she swallowed, continuing. "I haven't seen him have this much fun since... a long time ago. He's really happy."

Toris shook his head. "No," he said, "it should be me thanking you two."

They stared at each other for a moment, before Feliks shattered it. "Lie-e-e-et! Come on!"

Laughing, Toris went over to him. "Bye, Emma," he called. Feliks waved. She said her goodbyes from the doorway, and closed it.

"So," Toris said, as they settled into the front on his mom's dingy old car. "Are you ready?"

"Like, totally!" Feliks pumped his fist in the air. "I'm _so_ totally ready for this!"

**xXx**

"I'm _so_ totally not ready for this."

Toris looked at Feliks, who was gazing in fear up at the giant, wooden roller coaster. "What? C'mon, Feliks. We've been on every ride here already; this is the only one left!"

"What about the Ferris wheel?" Feliks shot back. "We haven't been there yet. Let's totally go there!"

"No." Toris was adamant that they go on the Ferris wheel after it became dark outside, and so far, it was just barely twilight. "We're going on this one."

Feliks kept trying to pull him back the whole way through the line. "Liet! Why do we have to go here! It's not even, like, safe, is it? I'm totally shaking in my boots! Look, even Mr Pony disagrees with you!" He stuck out the giant pink pony plushie.

"You're forgetting," Toris raised his eyebrows, "that I won that. Technically, he should be agreeing with me."

Feliks pouted. "But-but-"

And then, they were in the front of the line. Toris noted with a start that they were in the line for the first car. His heart started to beat in nervous excitement.

"I totally would have pegged you for the kind that hated roller coasters," Feliks said, making a last-ditch attempt to get out of there.

"No, not at all," Toris answered, grinning. "I love them." The train rolled up in front of them. "I would have pegged you as a type who liked them, though."

Feliks eyes the car, and gulped. "Like, totally not," he moaned. No seat belts. No clamps to hold them in. Nothing to hold on to but a metal bar in front of them. And Liet, who was already sitting down.

He held out his hand. "Are you coming?"

After a moment's hesitation, Feliks dropped Mr Pony into the waiting area, and plopped down beside him. "You _so totally_ owe me for this," he growled. Toris merely grinned in his face.

As the train jolted to a start, Feliks latched his arm onto Toris. "Ohmygod, omygod, oh my fucking god _Liet_ we are going to _die_, die, die, ohhh my god..."

It climbed higher and higher, and Toris felt that thrill he always felt on roller coasters. Maybe it was a little uncharacteristic of him, but he never got tired of the rush it gave him as the cart slowed near the top.

"Hey, Feliks?"

"Y-yeah?" The blond barely managed to look at him; his eyes had been glued on the disappearing ground below them.

"I love you."

Feliks started, blushing a little. "I... I love you t_AAHHHHHHHHHH!_"

The rest of his sentence was lost as the coaster barrelled down that first drop, Feliks shrieked and wailed, holding on to Toris' torso as tight as he could.

Toris, on the other hand, had threw his arms up and his head back and was screaming as loudly as he could. The wind whipped through his hair, and he closed his eyes, and for a few minutes, the only things in the whole world were the wind, the noise, and the pressure of Feliks' arms around him.

As it rolled to a stop, he attempted to detach the shaking Polish boy from him. But Feliks refused to move. "T-that was totally uncool," he whispered hoarsely.

Toris sighed, and dragged Feliks away. "Look, here's Mr Pony."

Feliks practically fell onto the soft plushie. "You owe me _so _much."

Toris couldn't stop grinning. "But wasn't it fun?"

Feliks refused to answer.

As dusk fell over the park, and the younger children began to leave, they bought some cotton candy and settled on a bench nearby, munching on it. Feliks was still shaking, and he hadn't yet let go of Mr Pony.

"Were you really that scared?" Toris was amused by Feliks. After all, wasn't he the one who wanted to go here so badly in the first place?

"Well..." Feliks still wasn't looking at him. "I... I've kinda never been on a roller coaster before."

"Really?" Toris leaned over. "Then why were you so determined to go on it earlier?"

The blush on Feliks' face was so deep, he was almost glowing. He mumbled something unintelligible.

"What was that?" Toris leaned in closer.

"I... I thought that maybe if I was with you I could do it."

Well. That was a surprise.

Toris thought back on what Emma had said earlier that day. _"Feliks hasn't had this much fun since... a long time ago." _Could it really be that Toris was bringing him out of his shell as much as Feliks was doing for him?

"Well, I guess it worked then, didn't it?" he said, and kissed Feliks on the cheek.

There was that clicking noise, the same one Toris had heard at school! He looked up, but he didn't see anyone there, just a girl with wavy brown hair buying cotton candy.

"So," said Feliks a few minutes later, obviously having gotten over his traumatizing ordeal. "It's like, dark out now."

"Yes, so it is," Toris sighed. "Well? Ready to go?"

"Like, totally!" Feliks jumped up. "Let's go let's go let's go!"They raced off towards the giant, lit up Ferris wheel.

**xXx**

"Wow," Feliks leaned out. "It's, like, sooo pretty up here!"

Toris didn't bother looking out. He was watching Feliks. "Yeah, it really is."

The blond was on his knees, balancing precariously on the edge of their car. His hair waved in the breeze, his cheeks were red from the cold, and when he looked back at Toris, he green eyes sparkled and shone. "I love being up this high!"

"Really? It didn't seem like that earlier," Toris teased, indicating the roller coaster.

Feliks made a face. "Yeah, but then we were going at speeds of mass destruction," he complained. "Up here, it's like, _breathtaking_!"

"You're breathtaking," Toris said softly, hoping Feliks wouldn't hear him.

His hopes were dashed, as Feliks turned towards him again, blushing madly. "Liet?"

Toris bit his lip. "I said, you're breathtaking," murmured, looking Feliks in the eyes. "You look so beautiful tonight."

Indeed, no light in the entire park shone as brightly as Feliks' face. Eyes filling with tears, he lunged across the car at Toris, and the two intertwined themselves, kissing fiercely.

At the bottom, the operator sighed. "There are only two people left, and they're making out like crazy." He turned to his partner. "Should I even stop it?"

The girl looked over at the two, who were on their third turn and their lips hadn't left each others. "Nah," she said, smile twisting a little. "They look happy. Let's just leave them be."

The Ferris wheel continued to turn.

**A/N So romantic... it's my personal belief that 'breathtaking' is the most romantic compliment someone can give.**

**Does anyone watch the Hetalia episodes as they come out? I just saw the latest two today. And they were both about LietPol! I was so happy! I hope the one tomorrow is about them as well, I love them so much!**

**Ugh. Time to go take my meds. Goodnight, everybody.**

**...If you wanna make me feel better, reviews always help~ :3**


	10. It Moves With Such A Perfect Grace

**A/N Oh, hey. Didn't see you there.**

**Did I mention that we passed 100 reviews? 'Cause we did. And I'm super-duper unbelievably happy about it!**

**Also, I'm feeling a whole crap-ton better than before. It was all you people that did it! I love you all~~~**

**Disclaimer: Hetalia belongs to Hidekaz Hiramuya. Come What May belongs to Baz Luhrman and Moulin Rouge. I own naught but my own ideas.**

**On with the show~!**

_Chapter 10 – Suddenly It Moves With Such a Perfect Grace_

Feliks sighed, and flopped down on the couch. "Ugh. Liet, chem is so stupid without you."

Toris stifled a yawn, his eyes filling with tears. He wiped them tiredly, and attempted to make sense of his homework. "I'm still there, we just aren't partners anymore."

"Yeah, but I never get to talk to you because of stupid Mr Flehmehmeh!"

"Mr Flehmehmeh?" Toris raised his eyebrows at this new and interesting name for their teacher.

"Yeah!" Feliks rolled off the couch, and fell on the ground. "And my stupid new partner isn't helping me at all. He's totally making me do all the work!"

Toris could completely empathize with Feliks about that. It seemed their teacher had it in for them, pairing Feliks with a football jock that had a brain the size of a peanut; and pairing Toris with a cruel, popular girl who bullied him into doing everything.

This, of course, was the reason both of them were up at 3 am on a Saturday night, doing the labs neither of their partners agreed to help with.

"Do you even get this?" Feliks waved the paper in front of Toris' eyes. He shook his head in reply. Feliks groaned.

It had been a whole week since their night at the amusement park, and things had been going surprisingly well at school. Sure, there were the few occasional snide remarks, but things hadn't been nearly as bad as Toris had suspected it to be.

And every single day they spent together, Toris was finding himself falling more and more in love with the blond.

"Hey, Feliks?"

"Yeah~?"

"Wanna do to the mall tomorrow?"

"Sure!" Feliks stretched. "And I'm so _not_ finishing this lab." He tossed it aside. "Wanna play chess?"

"No." Toris had learned long ago the consequences of playing chess with Feliks. "And you really should be finishing it off."

Feliks' face twisted. "Well, are you gonna finish it?"

He thought for a moment, looking at the paper, then up at Feliks, then back at the paper. "Hell no," he decided.

Feliks squealed happily and pounced on him.

**xXx**

"Liet, I so don't know what to wear," Feliks complained, staring at himself in his full-length mirror. "Everything I wear looks, like, so manly!"

Toris wanted to point out that Feliks couldn't look manly even if he wanted to, but decided to keep his mouth shut. "Maybe you should wear girls clothing," he suggested from the bed, where he was currently trying to catch a few more minutes of sleep before they left.

"No!" Feliks cried. "If we're at the mall, there's a danger of seeing people we _know_ there, and I can't let anyone but you see it!"

"Okay, okay," Toris raised his hands in surrender. "Just wear something pink, then."

Feliks' face brightened immediately. "Of course!" he shouted, diving into his dresser drawer. Toris smiled. _Pink is always the best way to go with you_, he thought.

"Okay," said Feliks, clambering out of a pile of clothes, "What do you think?"

Toris blinked. "_Where_ did you get a _neon pink_ concert t-shirt for _Three Days Grace_?"

"Um, from a concert?" Feliks said. "Like, duh, Liet!"

He couldn't even begin to comprehend all the things that were wrong with Feliks in a concert t-shirt, black skinny jeans with holes in the knees, and ratty Converse that had marker drawn all over them. He looked so boyish, and un-Feliks-like!

... and yet, oddly, so appealing...

Toris pushed that certain thought away. "Um, y-you look great. B-but you always do! So-uh-um..."

The whole time Toris was stuttering, Feliks just stood there, grinning. Finally, he seemed to have enough of torturing Liet, and pulled at his arm. "C'mon! Let's get moving!"

The bus ride was excruciatingly painful, because Toris was still blushing like crazy, and Feliks was cuddling up right next to him. The bus driver was a really nice lady, and always seemed to be on their side, but he couldn't say the same for the other passenger of the bus. Particularly the ones who kept shooting dirty glances in their direction.

Finally it was over, and they stood in front of the biggest mall their city had to offer. Feliks practically had tears of appreciation in his eyes. "I love the mall," he sighed, mind already racing with the things he wanted to buy.

And he grabbed Toris' arm and raced forward.

**xXx**

"I still fail to comprehend how you've managed to buy all that stuff in just two hours," Toris said, eyeing the several large shopping bags full of clothes Feliks' arms were laden with. Apparently most stores bought the story he was buying things for his girlfriend.

"Yeah, well," said Feliks airily. "What am I supposed to do at a mall?"

"How about window shopping?" Toris muttered under his breath, but Feliks didn't hear, because he was focused on another person walking towards them.

"Feli?"

The auburn-haired boy turned his head, and caught sight Feliks. "Ve? Is that you, Feliks?"

In a second, they had grabbed each other's hands and were jumping up and down like little girls. Toris raised his eyebrows.

"Oh!" Feliks cried, after they were done. "Feli, come meet my boyfriend! Toris, this is Feliciano, one of my bestest pals!"

"Um, hi," said Toris shyly, but Feliciano just grabbed his hand and pumped it up and down. "Really? Feli's boyfriend? Wow, it's so good to meet you!"

Toris inwardly decided not to mention that they called each other, "Feli."

"Feli graduated last year," Feliks said proudly. "He was my longest running friend, besides you of course, Liet." He turned to his friend. "So, how's your love life going these days?"

Feliciano's face clouded. "Oh, um..." he bit his lip. "I have to get going, it was nice seeing you, bye!" he said in a rush, and was off before Feliks could even say anything.

"Hmm," Feliks chewed on hi lip. "That was really kinda wacky, huh?"

_Who says wacky anymore? _"Were you really good friends with him?"

"We were both gay, which was why we were such good friends. We kept each other's secrets." He sighed. "Like, but I never told him about... the other thing. I was too afraid..."

"He wouldn't accept it?" Toris smiled softly. "Ah, I'm sure he would have, Feliks."

The leaned close. Toris was about to close his eyes... but Feliks' snapped open. "Oh my God! Liet, look, look, _look_!"

Across the way was one of those photo booths. Feliks was practically bouncing up and down in excitement. "I've like, never been in one of those! Oh, can we go, Liet, please?"

Toris sighed, and stood up. Kissing would just have to wait, apparently. "Alright, come on."

As they crammed inside the booth, Feliks murmured something inaudible. "Hmm, what was that?"

"Nothing." And the first picture snapped.

**xXx**

They sat outside on the bench, the warm spring air breezy around them. Both of them were gazing at the photo reel in their hands.

The first picture had Feliks taking up the entire frame. The second, Toris pushing a blurry Feliks out of the way; the third, they were both smiling like crazy. The fourth, they were kissing.

A crunch a few meters away caught Toris' attention he snapped his head up just in time to see a light brown blur dashing behind a tree. "Stay here," he told Feliks, and was off, running wildly after the blur.

It only took him a few long strides before he caught a shoulder. A girl whirled around, with long, light brown hair and green eyes. Toris realized with a start that it was the same one he saw at the amusement park. And in her hands, she was clutching a camera.

"It was you," he said, in sudden realization. "You were the one making the clicking noise." He gasped. "You were taking pictures?"

She blushed heavily. "I-I haven't shown them to anyone!" She cried. "I just – well..."

"Well, what?" Toris demanded.

"I... you guys look really cute together," she admitted. "And I think what you're doing is absolutely wonderful." She smiled a little. "I wish the whole world could be more open about it..."

Her words were kind, and Toris felt his anger dissipating. He looked at the camera. "Did you get any good ones?"

A smile worked its way on her face, seemingly unintentional. "Yeah, some. But most of them turned out blurry." She fingered the camera softly. "I'd love just one good one."

Toris looked down at the roll of photos. He hesitated for a second, then ripped off the bottom one, and handed it to her. She stared at it in awe. "What... do you mean, I can..."

"Take it, yes." Toris smiled at her. For some reason, he liked this girl, and wanted to help her. "Thank you for believing in us."

She sniffed. "Thank you." She hugged him suddenly. "And I'm Elisabeta Hedervary."

He smiled. "Toris Laurinaitis."

**xXx**

"So she was taking pictures of us the whole time?" Feliks mused. Toris nodded. "That's like, so weird..." His face was furrowed in thinking. "Hedervary... you know, I think I might know her."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah, she's a sophomore; I think she was in my photo class last semester."

"Cool."

They sat for another few minutes, just enjoying each other's company. Then something poked at Toris' memory. "What were you going to say earlier? In the photo booth?"

"Oh, that..." Feliks' voice was a lot quieter. "Um... I was wondering... if you wanted to know the reason I don't tell anyone... about me..."

Toris gently turned Feliks' face towards himself. "Tell me," he said firmly, softly.

Feliks drew a deep breath, and began to tell his story.

"We used to live with my dad, my mom and I, and he wasn't... the nicest of people. But it was alright, we were fine. Mom has a good job, so did Dad, we had good money. Everything was going the way it should.

"But neither my mom nor I could ignore the fact that I was extremely girly, more like a daughter than a son. I used to go try on her wedding dress, and steal her makeup, all that kind of stuff. I think she was like, really worried in the beginning, but as I got older, she just sort of accepted it. And I accepted it.

"But like, Dad came from a really strict background, and that kind of thing was totally looked down upon. The day he found out about it... was the day my life totally ended."

And now there were tears rolling down his cheeks. Toris, horrified, wrapped him tightly in his arms. But Feliks wasn't done.

"He blamed Mom for the way I was, and started to beat us both. L-luckily, Mom was the kind of woman who didn't take anyone's shit, so she immediately went to the law. It was all over quickly, but..." He was gasping as he cried. "I'll like never forget the way he reacted to it, and I'm always just so afraid that's how everyone else will take it!"

Toris was on the verge of tears as well, now. He held Feliks so tight, bones might have been broken. "I'll never let that happen to you again," he whispered fiercely. "I promise."

Needless to say, Toris spent Sunday night with Feliks as well.

**A/N *sniffle* Why does everyone's father have to be such an asshole?**

**Okay. Well, there's a snow blitz at my house, and I'm gonna play. See you next week, guys! And remember – reviews make Feliks stop crying! *smiles~***


	11. My Life Doesn't Seem Such A Waste

**A/N Story's just over halfway done... makes me sad :( **

**Also, WARNING: It may be getting sadder. Be prepared. And be prepared for the reappearance of evil.**

**Oh yeah. Another thing, before I forget, I just wanted to mention that if I don't reply to your review, or if there's spelling errors, I'm really, really sorry. I do try my hardest to answer them all, but... well, I'm sure you all understand. Anyway. I'm just saying that I do read them all, and appreciate them all so much, even though I might not reply. I still notice you~ :3**

**Disclaimer: Hetalia belongs to Hidekaz Hiramuya. Come What May belongs to Baz Luhrman and Moulin Rouge. I own naught but my own ideas.**

**The show must go on...**

_Chapter Eleven – Suddenly My Life Doesn't Seem Such A Waste_

It didn't matter if Feliks was right beside him. School was officially the worst thing he'd ever had to go through.

They stood at the front of the room, both trying their hardest to avoid the teacher's intense gaze. Toris shifted from foot-to-foot, feeling his heart beat a thousand miles a minute. Several snickers floated across the class, but were quickly silenced by a glare from their teacher.

"Why is it," he said, voice gruff, "that _neither _of you managed to get your labs done this weekend?"

Beside him, Feliks burst out, "It totally wasn't our faults! I mean, our partners totally didn't do anything, either!"

"I don't care," the teacher cut them off. "If your partner is irresponsible, then it is your job to get them done." He shuffled some papers, "Well, this will just have to rest as a black mark on your books, for both of you."

Toris winced. He had an almost perfect record. And even though Feliks had needed him last night, and Toris wouldn't have left him for the world – he still wanted to keep that record intact!

Sighing, they both went to sit down in their seats.

Attempting to take his mind off things, Toris tried to doodle. But there was just too much clouding his troubled mind for him to draw anything remotely good.

Feliks hadn't spoken to him anymore about his dad. After coming home from the mall, they had simply gone back to Feliks' house and stayed in each other's arms for hours. It was honestly the quietest Toris had ever seen him, and he wondered how much his father had really hurt him.

Another thought went through him like a knife – Feliks had told him everything about himself, and his past, and yet here Toris was, still keeping secrets. _Pathetic, _he thought,_ you're pathetic. _

Then he decided. Today. He would tell Feliks everything today.

**xXx**

After school, it was common for the smokers to hang out at the basketball court. This was where Toris was waiting, after telling Feliks to meet him there to tell him something. Feliks was late again, as was per usual with Feliks. Toris didn't mind. The smokers were so doped up they didn't even notice anything.

He watched them for a while, covering his nose from the smell of the weed floating his way. As he turned his head, a girl walking with silver hair caught his eye.

His head whipped around, but no one was there.

_Stop thinking about Natalia, _he ordered himself_. That was what got you into that Ivan mess in the first place._

And besides, there was no way Natalia could be here. She hadn't come back from the correctional facility yet.

"Thinking about her again, da?"

The voice made Toris jump a mile, but he turned back to face Ivan. "So. That was you I saw."

"Da, you thought I was my sister, didn't you?"

Toris gulped. "Y-you do look a b-bit like her, yes." His voice shook, but he held his ground and thought of Feliks. Ivan didn't scare him. Not anymore. "And h-how did you k-know I was thinking about h-her?"

"You were playing with your sleeve." Ivan gestured to Toris' fingers, which he noticed with a start were indeed fiddling with his sleeve. He hadn't even noticed. "You always used to play with your clothes when thinking about her."

"S-she has a n-name, you know," Toris mumbled. "It's N-Natalia."

Ivan's face went slightly white. "That is none of your business, da?"

Toris shook his head. "A-anyways, why are you here, Ivan?"

The Russians face darkened instantly. "Why is it you are not so afraid of me anymore?" He sidled over to Toris' other side, and began to stroke his hair. Toris flinched, but held his ground. "Is it all because of that little boyfriend of yours?"

"T-that's right," Toris said, pulling his hair out of Ivan's grasp. "Feliks taught me that I don't have to be afraid of you anymore."

"Oh, but you should be," Ivan purred. "You see, Toris, I miss you. I want to get back together with you. But little Feliks is in the way." He cocked his head. "he always seems to get under my skin, da?"

"I don't believe you." Toris stood up. "The last time you said that, absolutely nothing happened. You are only trying to scare me. But it won't work this time." His voice was steadily gaining, and courage was rushing through his veins. "I want you to leave, Ivan," he said. "I want you to go away and never bother me again."

Ivan's face look momentarily hurt. His eyes seemed to lose some of their life. "Toris..." he mumbled softly. Toris smirked at him.

"Go away and never come back," he whispered, elation at his success filling him from top to bottom.

Quick as a heartbeat, Ivan was standing in front of him, looking down, and exuding an aura of pure evil. "Mark me, Toris," he growled, voice raspy, "one day you will come back to me. If I can't have you, no one can." And he turned and walked away.

Toris let out a breath he didn't know he'd been holding in. Slowly, his heart rate slowed, and his breathing calmed. It was over. Ivan was gone.

_If I can't have you, no one can. _What had he meant by that? Mind working furiously, Toris felt his way back to the bench. Where was Feliks? Why was he taking so long? Toris needed to talk to him, _now_.

His hand connected with something, and it wasn't a bench. Rather, it was the warm flesh of a human being. Heart pounding, and fully expecting to see Ivan back for more, he looked up and felt his face connect with someone's fist.

He stumbled back a few steps. Finally able to grasp his bearings, Toris recognized the kid in front of him as one of the school's jock assholes. He rubbed his jaw, wincing as pain shot through him, making his eyes water. "W-what... why would you..."

The jock sneered. He really did have an ugly face. "Thought you could just get away with this without consequences?" he mocked. "I've been waiting two whole weeks for this, faggot!" And he kicked Toris. Hard.

_Oh, crap, _was the only thing Toris could think as another boy came forward and pushed him to the ground.

"P-please," he mumbled thickly, as blood pooled in his mouth, "Stop it, guys, please."

A few of them stepped back, looking for orders from their ringleader. He answered by stepping forward and kicking Toris in the gut.

This seemed to be all the crowd needed. Incensed, a few more came into the ring and began kicking as well. On the ground, Toris could do nothing but let them.

Finally, they stopped. The chanting crown dispersed, leaving only the original bullies and Toris behind.

He coughed, blood spattering the ground. His face was numb, and he could feel bruises forming all over his body. He could barely pull himself up to a sitting position, he was shaking so badly.

"Braginski was right about this one," a voice came from somewhere above his head. "He doesn't even fight back."

_Ivan. _Toris' whole world seemed to plummet around him. Vertigo made his stomach rise into his throat. _Ivan_. Ivan did this. He had been wrong not to fear him, because there was everything to be afraid of.

"I should have known," he breathed, so quietly the others couldn't hear him. "Damn it."

"_Hey!"_

The voice, demanding, indignant, and ever-so-familiar sent chill straight down Toris' spine. His head snapped up to see Feliks, standing a little ways away, with a horrified and angry look on his face. He started to stomp towards them.

The jock snickered, and cracked his knuckles. "Look at this," he cackled the other one is here." And he started towards the blond, murder in his eyes.

"Feliks!" Toris managed to shout, pulling himself up to his knees. "_Feliks, no_!"

But it was too late. The jock had reached him, and punched him so hard he went flying backwards.

Laughing uproariously, the group of bullies left, leaving Toris alone to scramble to Feliks' side.

"Feliks?" He shook his shoulders. Tears ran unbidden down his cheeks. "Feliks!"

"Liet?" The other boy slowly opened his eyes. Toris saw with a jolt that one was bloodshot and swollen. "Like, hey..."

"Feliks!" Toris cried, burying his face into the blond's shirt. "I'm so sorry," he sobbed, "I'm sorry, I'm sorry!"

"Hey, hey. Like, _whoa_." Feliks pulled him off, and looked at his face. "Oh, _God_, Liet, what happened to you?"

"It was all my fault!" Toris was still crying. "I'm sorry, I promised you, I promised, and now... I'm sorry!" he wailed, voice breaking.

"You promised _what_?" Anger created a bite in Feliks' words. "Liet, will you just tell me what _happened?_"

Toris sniffed. "They beat me up," he said, "because I'm gay. Feliks, please..."

But he trailed off, because he could see, in Feliks' one good eye, pain and hurt filling in along with tears. "Feliks?"

"_I'm sorry!"_ he screamed, throwing himself forward and wrapping arms around Toris' neck. "This was all my fault, if only I'd come earlier, we could have left, and – Liet, this all happened because of _me_!"

"No!" Toris was shaking his head violently. "No, Feliks, it was my fault! I provoked Ivan! And I promised... I promised myself I wouldn't let you get hurt anymore!" His chest heaved as he sobbed harder. 'And now I've failed..."

Both of them were wailing now, clinging on to each other as if something was trying to tear them apart. Tears flowed freely from two sets of green eyes. The sun began to sink in the sky.

Finally, Feliks disentangled himself from their awkward embrace. "I'm taking you home."

"What? No!"

"Like, yes." Feliks stood up slowly, and pulled Toris up beside him. "You're in totally worse condition than me, and you mom has to see you."

He shook his head. "I don't want her to see me like this."

Feliks glared. "_I don't care." _Then he sighed. "Look, I won't tell her anything about why they did it, okay? But you need to be home." He looked sadly at Toris. "Like, if I was your mom, I'd want to know everything."

Toris sighed. "Okay." He stumbled as he stepped forward, but didn't fall. "Let's go."

"And then," Feliks said, looking straight ahead, "you can tell me all about Ivan."

Right.

_Shit._

**A/N I read this book called Rainbow Boys yesterday. It's about gay guys, if you didn't grasp that from the title. I firmly suggest you go read it. It's like yaoi... but in my **_**school library!**_

**Anyways. Next chapter includes epic revealing of Toris' mad history. I've been dropping hints at it the whole time, but does anyone know exactly what happened? Can anyone guess? Review, and tell me what you think!**

**Or, y'know, you can just drop by a review to be nice... because this chapter was mean and sad and reviews make me feel happy :)**


	12. It All Revolves Around You

**A/N Hi. Sorry I didn't update yesterday, but I was at Girl Guide camp all weekend. If anyone of you has ever been in Guides or Scouts...you know how it feels. I really meant to update yesterday, but when I got home I was totally wiped. But I'm a bit better now. Still tired, though...**

**Disclaimer: Hetalia belongs to Hidekaz Hiramuya. Come What May belongs to Baz Luhrman and Moulin Rouge. I own naught but my own ideas.**

**The show must go on...**

Toris stared at the caller ID. The phone was still ringing, it's loud and clear bell the only thing he could hear. It was Elisabeta, he saw. She wanted to know what had happened.

Feliks watched him from across the room, his dull eyes fixated on Toris' face, and the multiple cuts and bruises adorning it. _There's a side to my Liet I don't know_, he thought sadly. A side that included large, scary Russians and dark secrets. A side Toris had decided to keep from him all this time.

Needless to say, Feliks was not happy.

Toris glanced up when the other made his way towards him, bandaging the last scrape on his face. He murmured his thanks, then reached up to feel his face. He felt like a mummy, there were so many bandages.

When they had stumbled in the door earlier that evening, Henrietta had blown up in a fit of worry and anger. There was barely any time to make hasty introductions, as they tried to keep her from calling the school. If she had called, she would have no doubt found out Feliks and Toris' relationship. And Toris just didn't think he was ready for that, not yet.

She had ended up leaving late for work, making sure Feliks had the situation under control. The second she was out the door, a heavy and uncomfortable silence had fallen across the two. Feliks was obviously upset, and Toris didn't quite know how to handle it.

So he had let the other bandage him up, and rubbed some salve on his black eye. Toris still felt a wave of guilt whenever he looked at it; he had promised Feliks no one would ever hurt him again, and look how he had turned out.

He hung his head, matted hair covering his eyes.

Feliks reappeared at his side, ready with a wet cloth. "Lie down," he instructed. Toris obliged, allowing the blond to place the cool cloth on his forehead.

They sat in silence for a few minutes, the only noise coming from the ticking clock on the wall. Finally, Feliks spoke. "Who's Ivan?"

The question was blunt, and took Toris by surprise. He covered his face, groaning. "Feliks, please, I can't talk about this right now."

"I kind of don't care." His voice was sharp. "Tell me, Liet."

Toris gulped. "I met him in middle school. I had a crush on his sister, and he used me to.." he swallowed. "To get back at her."

Feliks quirked an eyebrow. "That's it?" He said icily. "You're not telling me the truth, _again_, Liet."

"No!" Toris sat upright. The cloth fell splat in his lap. "That is the truth, Feliks, I swear!"

"Then why don't I, like, believe you?"

Toris felt his throat closing up. He couldn't stand to have Feliks talk to him this way. "I... I don't know how much of the truth I can tell." He gulped. "It's a really long story."

"We have time." Feliks crossed his legs. "Please, Liet. Continue." His posture was so calm, Toris almost forgot the blond was mad.

He reached out a hand, and touched Feliks' cheek softly. The blond closed his eyes, and winced slightly, but held his ground, allowing Toris to run his fingers along the curve of his brow. Toris leaned forward, about to kiss him, but a finger stopped him. He opened his eyes.

Feliks had his hand up, an unreadable look on his face. "Liet. Tell me about Ivan. _All _of it."

Seeing no other way out of this, Toris sat back, closed his eyes, and began to tell.

"When I was back in middle school, there was this girl. Natalia Arlovskaya, her name was. She was a year younger than me, and incredibly pretty. A lot of boys back then wanted her, and I was one of them. But she would never let anyone close to her. It was almost like she didn't see anyone at all – anyone but her brother."

Feliks raised his eyebrows.

"He was my age, in one of my classes, but I had never really talked to him. Likewise, he never noticed me. But when I found out he was Natalia's brother, I started to pay more attention to him. And so I found out about the way she liked him. It was a little strange, but-"

"Wait a minute," Feliks interrupted. "You're saying this girl had a thing for her older brother?" Toris nodded. "And you still liked her?"

He blushed. "T-they weren't one hundred per cent related!" he protested. "They were half-siblings." He hung his head. "And yes... I still liked her. Enough to actually talk to her brother. Ivan.

"After he found out I liked his sister, he started taking a real interest in me – and started to set up dates between us. It was almost as if he was using me as a blockade between him and Natalia, but I never noticed. I was just happy to be dating Natalia.

"But shortly after that, their older sister Katyusha came to talk to me. She told me about how neither of them was entirely right in the head. I didn't believe her, of course, until the day.." he swallowed. "Until the day Katyusha was murdered."

Feliks gasped, all traces of amusement gone from his face. "Who... who killed her?"

"I never found out whether it was Natalia or Ivan," he answered honestly. "It's one of the things that scares me the most about Ivan. But Natalia was the one convicted by the court, as she had a history for getting mad at her sister whenever she got too close to Ivan. They sent her to a correctional facility. She isn't supposed to get out." He shuddered. But I saw her everywhere, for months after that. Like she was haunting me."

Feliks had a white face. "Is she dead? Was it actually her ghost?"

"No. I would have heard if she was. It was more her memory that haunted me."

Silence settled between them. Feliks sat perfectly still, digesting all of this information. Ivan Braginski, possible murderer. Now he understood why Toris didn't want to talk about him. But still... something was off. "So, was that it? It just, ended?"

Toris started to agree, but stopped himself. _Feliks needs to know the whole story, _he argued with himself. _You've come this far. Might as well finish it._

"Well, no. After... after Natalia was locked away, Ivan didn't leave me alone. He started clinging to me for comfort." He blushed. "It took me a long time to notice it, but eventually I realized he wanted more than just friendship."

"Eh? What?" Feliks jumped up. "You mean... you two were..." Toris nodded, hanging his head. "Ehhh?

He began pacing the room, rubbing his temples. "Wait, wait, wait... so you two had a special relationship?" Nod. "You were more than just friends?" Nod. "But you just said you were terrified of him!"

"I was! I _am_!" Toris sat up straight. "But that's how it got started – he wanted something, and I was too afraid to stand up to him." He stood up. "It's shameful, I know, Feliks. But you have to promise you won't tell anyone. Ever."

The blond stared at him long and hard for a couple of minutes. Toris fidgeted under his gaze, but never allowed his eyes to waver in their staring battle.

"So, you're like, saying you've kissed a guy before and you never thought you were gay?"

Toris' jaw dropped. "I-that-well-" He stumbled. "I couldn't have known! He was the one forcing it on me!"

He stopped when he realized Feliks was smiling. Actually smiling. "Wh-what?"

"You're face! It's just, it's so funny right now~!" Feliks squealed, and launched himself at Toris, wrapping his arms around him tightly. Toris could feel the vibrations of his chest as he giggled.

"So..." Toris pulled away from their embrace. "Does that mean I'm forgiven?"

Feliks pulled a face. "I'm still totally mad that you didn't tell me at first," he said, glaring. "That's the kind of thing you have to tell me, you know." His face softened. "But, I totes get why you didn't say anything. I mean, it's a pretty scarring thing."

Toris sighed, relief washing across his face. "Ah, Feliks, I'm sorry, I shouldn't have kept it from you. I promise it won't happen again. And I'm really happy that you're not mad at me anymore, because-"

"Although, I'm like, gonna have to kill him for this," Feliks growled, his face dark and a crazy smile on his face. "Ivan, bastard, I'm totally gonna kill you~!" He jumped past Toris, who screamed and ran after him.

"Wait, Feliks! It's not worth it! Save yourself! What-DON'T TAKE MY KITCHEN KNIFE!"

"Nyahahahahaha!"

He chased him around the house, both of them laughing, and trying to avoid touching their bruises. Toris' phone rang, and he picked up, not bothering to check the call. "Like, hello? Feliks speaking~!"

"Liet! I totally don't sound like that!"

It was Elisabeta. Putting it on speaker, the three of them talked for what seemed like hours, until Emma came over to drag Feliks home. _"Let me have a look at you, dummy, what kind of silly fight did you get into now?"_

It was only a couple of hours after Feliks left that Toris realized Ed and Raivis had been watching them the whole time. "What are you looking at?"

**A/N I'm dead on my feet here, guys. So I'm just gonna ask for a review, and then go have a nap. Night night.**


	13. No Mountain Too High, No River Too Wide

**A/N Holy crap, you guys! Stupid ffnet is the worst website in the WORLD, it wasn't letting me upload. This error message kept popping up. I was TOTALLY FREAKING OUT, plus I couldn't reply to anyone's review. I am so so so so so so sorry. Damned website.**

**BUT, thanks to the mad skills of Choko-Loki, I can update again. Hooray~! Everyone thank her by going and reading her stories!**

**Disclaimer: Hetalia belongs to Hidekaz Hiramuya. Come What May belongs to Baz Luhrman and Moulin Rouge. I own naught but my own ideas.**

**The show must go on...**

_Chapter Thirteen – And There's No Mountain Too High, No River Too Wide_

Shaking in his socks, Toris attempted to avoid the gazes of his two younger brothers. They stared at him in silence, seemingly waiting for him to make the first move towards conversation.

"I knew it," said Eduard finally. "I knew it was you those rumours were about."

"Shit," Toris mumbled under his breath.

"Why were you kissing another guy?" Raivis wanted to know. Toris blushed madly.

"Never you mind," Eduard said sternly, glaring at him. "I'll tell you later." He turned to Toris, as Raivis went back downstairs. "Does Mom know?"

Toris stared at his feet. "No."

"Why haven't you told her yet? You know she would want to know about this."

"Because!" His head snapped up, a little too fast. "Ow. Because I don't want to cause her any more worry."

"She's gonna worry when she sees your face, idiot!"

"Sh-she already has seen it. And she's met Feliks," he added, before Ed could continue. "She just doesn't know about our... involvement... yet."

"Okay." Ed sighed, and pushed back his glasses with his finger. "Then when are you going to tell her?" His eyes flashed. "Because if you don't, I will."

Toris gulped. "All right, I'll tell her! I will, Ed, please, just let me do it. I promise, I will." His heart beat fast. Too much truth had been told today. This was all too much for his poor head to handle.

Eduard seemed to come to a decision. "All right," he said, "but I'm warning you. Do it." And he left to join Raivis downstairs, and no doubt tell him about everything.

Toris sighed, and stumbled up the stairs. In one day, how had everything become such a mess?

**xXx**

"Where is he? Where is he? Oh my God, I'm gonna totally like kill him," Feliks grumbled, as he prowled the school looking for Ivan. With his balled fists, bruised eye, and flower-print V-neck T-shirt, he was really quite terrifying. Really.

Toris trailed along behind him, looking fearful. "Feliks, c'mon, let's just go," he sighed, "we've been all over the school, all day! It really doesn't matter!"

"Yes, it does!" Feliks fumed. "I'm totally gonna go show that guy up! He'll never try to do anything to you again! Just wait till I'm, like, through with him!"

"That's exactly what I'm afraid of," Toris mumbled.

Apart from Feliks' day-long rampage to find Ivan and kill him, the school day had passed without event. The best part had been when Elisabeta and her friend Kiku got the jock suspended, although what for Toris hadn't yet found out.

"Feliks," he groaned, feeling a whine creep unbidden into his voice. "I have to go home."

"Then, like, go home!" His eyes were still scouring the area.

"I can't go until I know you aren't going to do something stupid and kill yourself. You aren't going to find him, you know."

"Yeah, yeah." Feliks turned, and sighed. "All right, fine. I'll stop. But I can't promise that I totally won't start again tomorrow."

"Deal."

On the way home, Toris found himself thinking about Ivan again, what happened before it all started; something he hadn't thought about in a long time. What if he had never gone out of his way to get Natalia, what if he had never spoken to Ivan? Would he have been different? Toris had always been kind of a pushover, but if he wasn't scarred on the inside, would he have been able to stand up for himself better?

_I wish it would have been like that_, he thought grimly. _I wouldn't have ended up with these bruises everywhere_. He winced as one started to ache.

When he reached home, he was startled to smell something burning. Dropping his bag, he dashed down the stairs and raced into the kitchen. "Mom, what the hell – holy!" He shouted, as he saw the flaming frying pan on the stove.

After dunking it in the sink, and flapping out all the smoke with a dish towel, he went to find his mother. "Mom? Mom, where are you? Are you aware that the house practically burned down?"

He found her in her bedroom, facing the wall, the phone clutched tightly in her hands. "Mom, he groaned, "what are you doing?"

"I just talked to your father."

He froze.

"He hadn't called in several weeks, and I was wondering what was up. He... he told me about you."

Her voice shook as she talked. Toris swallowed. He had meant to tell her, but not in this way. "Mom, I..."

She turned to him, and he gasped to see rivers of tears running down her face. "Toris..." she sniffed. "Why didn't you _tell_ me?"

He ran, and hugged her tightly as she broke down into sobs. "Do you... do you not trust me? Is that it? Toris, honey, I'm sorry, whatever I did, I..."

Toris' throat closed over. "No! No, Mom, it wasn't that, it was my own stupid fault I didn't tell you. I'm so sorry. I wanted to, but I was afraid of-"

Eduard and Raivis, who had heard all the noise from downstairs, had come up. Raivis began to cry immediately, and both of them moved forwards to hug the crying mother and son. Henrietta pulled them all into a tight embrace, hiccupping here and there.

"I love you all," she said forcefully. "No matter what. Don't you ever forget that."

**xXx**

"My mom wants to meet you."

Feliks spit out his drink. "_What?_ She found out?"

"Y-yeah, I told her," Toris mumbled. _More or less_, he added silently.

"Oh." Feliks took another sip of his soda, apparently to make up for the one he just lost. "So, how did she take it?"

"She was more upset that I hadn't told her sooner," Toris replied. That much was fact, anyways. "And she really wants to meet you."

Feliks scowled. "She's like, already met me. It was only two days ago!"

"No!" Toris laughed. "Meet you for real. As in, you know..."

"As in meeting the boyfriend?" Feliks inquired, eyebrows raised.

"Something like that, yeah."

They were sitting in the cafeteria, with Elisabeta and Kiku (who were both very involved in watching something weird on her laptop) and discussing the upcoming weekend. Well, Feliks was throwing out ideas, and Toris was rejecting all of them. He loved Feliks, really, but Crash Crawly's was where he drew the line.

"Okay, so dinner at your place today, movie marathon at my place on Saturday, and – Elisa, what are you watching?"

"None of your concern," she replied cheekily, as Toris blushed at the images flashing across the screen.

"Ugh, whatevs. Liet, what do we do on Sunday?"

"Um..." Toris thought for a moment. "Why don't we go to the park?"

"Perfect!" Feliks squealed. "Liet, you're fabulous at thinking of things to do."

Toris blushed with pleasure. "Ah, no, I'm not that good."

"Yes, you so are. Sleep over at my house Saturday, kay?"

"O-okay."

**xXx**

Henrietta was racing around the house, trying to clean every last minute thing possible. "Ah! How long until they're here?" she asked for the fifteenth time.

"Ten minutes," Toris replied wearily. "Mom, can't you just relax? It's only Feliks and his mom."

"Toris, if you ever have a family one day, you'll understand," she said seriously. "I take pride in this house."

He merely rolled his eyes. Sometimes parents could be so weird.

"Now, remember what I said. Feliks may or may not show up in girl's clothes, so don't freak out."

"I know, I know, you told me!" She straightened. "It's so strange... you never would have thought it before, but when you actually think about it, it becomes so obvious!" She looked over at him. "Don't you think so?"

Toris nodded. The doorbell sounded, and they both jumped. "Ahh!" Henrietta shrieked. "I'm totally not ready yet!" She raced for the door.

Toris gulped, trying to swallow down his fear as his mother slowly opened to door.

**A/N Haha, left you hanging~**

**Oh, no! What will Henrietta think of Feliks and his weird taste in clothes? Find out next time, on... COME WHAT MAY!**

**And, y'know, reviewing helps too... :)**


	14. Sing Out This Song, I'll Be There

**A/N Wow, guys. Chapter 14 already! I feel like time has flown by us so fast...**

**Oh well. Let's make the most of it! 8D**

**Disclaimer: Hetalia belongs to Hidekaz Hiramuya. Come What May belongs to Baz Luhrman and Moulin Rouge. I own naught but my own ideas.**

**The show must go on...**

_Chapter Fourteen – Sing Out This Song, And I'll Be There By Your Side_

Toris thought his heart must have stopped when his mother opened the door.

It wasn't that he had a problem with what Feliks was wearing, because really, he didn't. But maybe, just maybe, could he have chosen something that _wasn't_ completely neon pink?

For a moment the four of them stood silently, watching each other warily. Time slowed down, or at least, it did for Toris, as his heart beat so hard it started to hurt.

Finally, Emma cleared her throat. "Hm, hello," she said kindly, holding out her hand. Henrietta shook it, her eyes still a little dazed. She turned back to Feliks, who gulped.

"Did you..." her voice was soft, almost unheard. She coughed, and started again. "Where did you..."

Toris felt his heart stop. Like, literally, _stopped._

"...get that skirt, it's so gorgeous!"

And Toris was lost in a flurry of high-pitched squealing and hugging.

**xXx**

"Yeah, and this guy was like, totally hitting on me, and he doesn't realize yet that _I'm_ a guy too... Mom's laughing herself to, like, _death_ in the background and he's only just starting to get a little confused..."

Toris watched with a smile on his face as both Feliks and his mom, chattering animatedly about various trips they've had to the mall, and rattling off funny stories. Henrietta was laughing at everything they said. "Really? That's actually happened to you before?"

"Oh, yeah. And like, more than once, too. It was even funnier when Toris came along, 'cause his face gets really funny!" Feliks laughed, and poked him in the cheek with his fork.

He waved it away. "It's not that funny," he muttered, blushing.

"Well, of course it is!" Henrietta cried, giggling. Toris glared at her – his own mother, how could she? "I'll bet he was just really jealous!"

"How could he not be? This is ME we're talking about!" Feliks threw his hands up in the air, and the whole table dissolved in laughter, except for Toris, who's head hit the table.

"So," he said forcefully, attempting to get the conversation away from him, "where are Ed and Raivis?"

"Hmm? Oh," his mom sighed, "both are out at friend's houses, it's too bad they had to miss this. Eduard and Raivis are Toris' brothers. Well, half-brothers," she explained to Emma.

The other woman raised an eyebrow. "Half-brothers?" Something in her face said, 'explanation, please~'.

Henrietta sighed. "Toris, honey, why don't you go show Feliks your room?"

"But- he's already seen-"

"Now."

"Yup, okay, c'mon Feliks, let's go upstairs."

"Hm? Okay!"

Toris pulled Feliks up the stairs, knowing exactly what his mom was going to tell Feliks' mom. The whole story, from start to finish, and he didn't want to have to hear it. Again.

Once safely inside his room, Feliks flopped on the bed. "So, like, why did we leave? That was some good food!"

Toris bit his lip. "I have the feeling our moms are about to have a heart-to-heart session about why neither of us have a father."

Feliks sat up straight. "You really think..." his voice trailed off, as he stared at Toris, mouth hanging open, "Hey, wait up a second. What do you mean, neither of us have a father? _Your_ dad still talks to you, doesn't he?"

Toris hung his head, his bangs falling forward and covering his eyes. "He stopped calling me after I told him about us."

"What?" Feliks jumped off the bed, and grabbed Toris by the shirt collar. "And _why_ did like, keep this from me?"

"Because it doesn't matter."

"It does so matter!" Feliks cried. "Liet, how long ago did this happen?"

"Right after we got together," Toris ran his fingers through his hair, "but, but don't get mad!" He held up his hands as Feliks turned red with anger. "I didn't want to tell you, because I didn't want to worry you, because I don't care!"

"How can you not care?" Feliks half shrieked. "You had a father who loved you, who actually wanted something to do with you-"

"He didn't want anything to do with me because of us-"

"Then why didn't you end it with me?"

Toris froze. Feliks glared at him, tears beginning to roll down his cheeks. "Why?" he whispered, voice cracking. "_Why_, Liet?"

Toris heaved a deep breath. "Because if it meant having to give up you, then I didn't want anything to do with him, either!"

Feliks covered his face with his hands, and leaned forward, crashing into Toris' chest. "You really, like, care about me that much?"

He smiled softly. "Totally." He sighed. "I mean, I was sad for a while, and I was going to tell you, really I was... but the more time I spent with you, the more I realized I didn't need him in my life anymore." He sighed. "To be honest, I almost forgot about him." He put his hands on Feliks' shoulders, and forced him to look him in the eye. "You have that effect on me," he said tenderly.

"What," Feliks grumbled, looking away. "Giving you short term memory loss?"

"No," Toris laughed softly. "Making me forget about things that hurt."

**xXx**

And when the two boys returned downstairs, one with slightly puffy eyes, they found both their mothers crying their eyes out, drinking hot chocolate and telling sob stories about their stupid, wretched husbands. Of course, Feliks and Toris had no choice but to break down and do the same.

"My eyes are still puffy," Feliks groaned, rubbing them. "I mean, it's been what, two days since our little sob fest and I haven't recovered yet?"

"You cried the hardest," Toris reminded him, "and the loudest. My ears still hurt."

"Like, shut up."

They wandered down the halls of the school, neither really wanting to go to class, neither really wanting to skip, either. Toris watched Feliks, the other's green eyes roaming over the walls. He stopped short, and Toris nearly walked into him. "Ow. What was that for?"

Silence. "Feliks? Hello-o?" He waved an arm in front of the other's eyes. He smacked it away. "Ouch! Feliks, what-"

"Look." With a shaky finger, Feliks pointed at one of the posters adorning the wall. Toris squinted, attempting to read it a bit better. "Join us for this years... oh no."

Feliks grabbed his shirt. His whole face had gone white. "Prom," he whispered, stars in his eyes. "Prom, Liet, prom!" Squealing with joy, he ripped the poster off and hugged it to his chest.

"I take it you're excited about this," Toris said, amused, watching his blond companion dance down the hall.

"Excited!" Feliks stopped, jaw hanging open. "Excited? Liet, I have been totally waiting for prom ever since I was little! It's like, the biggest thing that's ever going to happen to me in my entire high school career!"

His face was glowing with such excitement, Toris couldn't help but chuckle. "And who are you going to this... prom, with?"

He pouted. "Well, whoever asks me first~!"

This was getting fun. "Well, who do you _want_ to ask you?"

"Oh, this guy I know..."

"Yeah? What's he like?"

"A total idiot."

"Oh. Sounds like he shouldn't be the one taking you, then-"

"_Liet!_ Just _ask_ me already!

He laughed. "All right, all right. Feliks, will you go to prom with me?"

"Like, yes!" Feliks squealed, and jumped onto Toris. "Of course I will!"

Toris lifted him up and swung him around a couple of times. When he set him down, he turned to the side. "Come on, let's go to class."

"Okay~!"

"And Elisabeta?"

"..."

"You can stop recording now."

"...dammit."

A disappointed brunette turned off her camera and left her hiding spot, as Toris and Feliks laughed all the way down the hall.

**xXx**

Their chemistry teacher refused to look at them, merely continued to shuffle papers. "I don't know why he wants to see you. He just does."

"But like, what about our lesson!" Feliks said impatiently, stamping his foot.

"Your partner will take notes for you, I am sure," he said sternly. "Both of you to the principal's office, now!"

Feliks grumbled all the way down the hall. "He totally killed the mood," he complained. "Everything today was going so perfect, and now we have to go see Mr I-hate-gay-people!"

"Oh, he's not that bad," Toris said mildly. "I can think of worse people."

"You mean, like, Ivan?"

He shivered. "Please don't say that name. It's taboo."

They opened the doors to the principal's office together, ignoring the dirty looks the secretary shot them. "You wanted to see us, Mr..."

"Yes. Please, step inside."

He shut the door behind them, effectively disallowing their conversation to be overheard. Toris shivered. That was never a good sign.

"So, like, what's this about?" Feliks asked boredly, toying with the string on his hoodie. The principal seemed to glare at him for a second, the regained his calm composure. "It's about the prom."

Feliks immediately sat up a little straighter. "Yeah? Like, what about it?"

"I suppose you two were planning to go together?"

"Yeah," Feliks' brow furrowed. "Yeah, we were."

"Well, I'm afraid I can't allow that."

Oh no. Oh, _no_.

"What?" Feliks tightened his grip on the arms of the chair. "Hey wait. You like, can't do that."

"Actually, I can." He shuffled a few papers on his desk. "I simply cannot allow you two to be a worse influence to the other students then you already are." He fixed his glasses. "Now, if you would just agree to go with other girls, we could allow you in-"

Feliks stood up in his chair so fast it tipped over. "No! You can't – you can't _do_ that!"

The principal rose also. Toris, eyes darting back and forth between the two, backed up a little. "Feliks, it's alright, let's..."

"No!" Tears shone in Feliks' eyes. "No! It's not alright! This is – this is-" he struggled to find the right words. "A homophobic attack! You-" he pointed at the principal. "You should be ashamed of yourself! Bastard!" And he punched him in the face.

Toris gasped. Feliks turned and ran out of the office before the principal could say or do anything. Mouth gaping like a fish, Toris turned and ran out after him.

"Feliks! _Wait!"_

**A/N I have no idea if a principal can ban students from going to prom. My school doesn't have prom, just Grad dance, but I do know that if students have a record of violence, they can be banned from it. So...**

**Yeah...**

**Reviews make Feliks' tears go away~ :3**


	15. Stormclouds May Gather Stars May Collide

**A/N Whoo. Guess who saw Sucker Punch? I DID. Hehehe, there is literally not enough ass in this world for that movie to kick. I was mesmerized by it~**

**And now, on to more important topics. Like, the chapter. Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: Hetalia belongs to Hidekaz Hiramuya. Come What May belongs to Baz Luhrman and Moulin Rouge. I own naught but my own ideas.**

**The show must go on...**

_Chapter Fifteen – Storm Clouds May Gather, and Stars May Collide_

"Feliks!"

Toris dashed down the hallway, feet pounding on the floor. He could barely see Feliks running in front of him, turning corners sharply and slamming into walls. "Feliks, please! Wait!"

He rounded a corner, but the blond had disappeared. Breathing heavily, he looked around, trying to guess which way Feliks had gone. His answer came when he heard heavy sobs echoing up the stairwell.

"Feliks? Are you down here?" Toris cautiously came down the stairs, to see him sitting on the heater, knees curled into his chest. Sighing, Toris made his way over to him, until they were face to face.

"That was all I ever wanted," said Feliks softly. "To go to prom. It was like, my _dream_."

Toris pulled him closer, hugging him tight. "I know," he whispered. "You mentioned it. But," he pulled back, "why did you run away?"

Feliks sniffed, and wiped his eyes. "I want to go to prom, Liet," he said softly. "But I don't want to go unless I'm with you."

"Then," Toris said slowly, "we'll make our own prom."

"Huh?"

"We will! Who says we need to go to the stupid school one, anyways!"

"Liet... I love how romantic you're being right now, but how are we gonna do that?"

"I'll find a place! I'll get it all set up, and I'll even wear a tux. And you can get all dressed up, and I'll come pick you up, and we'll go – we'll have a blast! It'll be way better than anything that dumb principal of ours ever came up with-"

He was completely cut off by a soft pair of lips pressing against his own. "Thank you, Liet," Feliks whispered breathlessly. "I love you so much."

The corner of Toris' mouth turned up. "I love you, too," he murmured. "Now, get off the heater. It's burning my knees."

Feliks giggled, and as he hopped off, laced his fingers in with Toris'. "But my butt was so warm, sitting on there!"

"I don't care."

"Hmm, so rude, Liet! I just might have to punch your face too!"

"By the way, you should have seen the principals face after you did that. It was priceless."

"Aww, you should have taken a picture!"

**xXx**

That evening, Feliks discovered he really didn't like being suspended.

"I'm not even going to get mad at you," his mom said, sighing. "The consequences of your actions are bad enough. Did you know that we could have gotten your principal fired from his job for banning you two from going, but now that you're suspended there's no way you'll be able to go anyways." She looked over at Toris, who was smothering his laughter at Feliks' pouty face. "I'm so sorry about this, dear."

"Oh, it's okay," replied Toris, shrugging. "Seeing him with a black eye the size of Jupiter is payment enough for me."

Feliks groaned, and stretched out across the couch. "Mo-om, take me out dress shopping tomorrow."

"Don't you already have a dress?" asked Toris, remembering the pink, sparkly gown he'd seen in Feliks' closet that first day. "Why do you need to go out and buy a new one if-"

"What? I've like, already worn that dress!" Feliks cried, sitting up straight. "There is no way I can wear the same dress twice. It goes against, like, the rules of everything!"

"The rules of everything state that you have to buy it yourself this time," said Emma, looking amused. "Toris, hon, want to come with us?"

"NO!" Feliks clapped a hand over Toris' mouth. "There is absolutely no no no no NO way that Liet can come!"

"Okay, okay, that's fine, stop suffocating him!" Emma cried, as Toris attempted to pry the hand off his face. "Why can't he go?"

"Be-_cause_, if he went, then he'd see my dress! He's totally not allowed to, that's totally against the rules!"

Emma looked at Toris in bewilderment. "What set of rules does he follow!"

And Toris, who had just managed to get the hand away from him, replied "The rules of Polish chess. They extend to a lot more than just chess, apparently."

**xXx**

Toris had discovered that going to school was a lot more bearable when your boyfriend was the reason the school principal was wearing an eye patch.

Where before he had gotten cold stares and upturned noses, there were approving glances and knowing nods. Even a few of the teachers had to hide their smiles, for they surely knew the principal deserved what he got. Only the most homophobic of the students still treated them badly.

Chemistry had also become a party. Even his partner had started talking to him, promising to decorate the gym with rainbows in their honour. "I'm in charge of the decorating committee," she said, "so it'll be done for sure."

And Ivan? No one had seen him for a while. "He's been away sick," said the secretary gruffly, when asked.

So, all-in-all, Toris was having the best week of school he'd ever had. And everyday afterwards, he went straight home to plan his perfect mini-prom.

But by the time Saturday evening arrived, Toris had done a 180 back into worrywart mode. He had been to the park this morning; everything was set up to perfection.

He anxiously pulled at his tie, attempting to get some air into his shirt. Ed raised an eyebrow. "Well, don't you look spiffy," he said, smirking. Toris glared at him.

"Everything has to be perfect," he said through gritted teeth. "This is Feliks' dream. I have to make sure it comes true."

Henrietta twirled around. "Oh, look at my boy," she sighed, "so romantic! I never thought I would have such wonderful children!" Unable to contain herself, she pulled all three of them into a tight hug. "I love you all so much," she whispered.

"Mom!" wailed Raivis. "Let me go!"

"You're embarrassing me!" groaned Ed.

"Yeah, and I have to go!" Toris struggled to escape her vice-like grip.

Dusting off his sleeves, he stood by the door. "Okay," he said. "I'm going now. I might not be back until tomorrow morning."

Raivis made a face. "What does that mean?"

"It means he's gonna-"

Henrietta clapped a hand over her son's mouth. "Get going, Toris! I don't want you to be late!" She waved as he dashed out the door. "Have a good time! And don't crash my car!"

**xXx**

_Knock knock._

He stood outside the door, like he had many times before – only this time it seemed different. Yes, his palms were sweating, his knees were shaking, but for once, it was in excitement. Nothing was going to ruin this night for Toris. Absolutely nothing.

Emma opened the door, and smiled instantly upon him. "You look marvellous," she greeted, "Feliks is going to be so happy."

"I still feel a little bad," he sighed, "that no one else is going to see him. I know he would have loved to show the whole school his gorgeous dress." He glanced up the stairs. "Speaking of which..."

"Yes, he did buy an entirely new dress," she sighed. "I don't understand why, though. His other one was in perfectly good shape."

At that moment, however, Feliks appeared at the top of the stairs, and all conversation ceased. Toris felt his heart stop, blood rushed to his cheeks, and he inhaled slightly. Feliks grinned, and began to descend down the stairs.

His dress was a long, shimmery gold, with a tight bodice and a flowing skirt. Underneath, he could see rhinestone covered strappy heels, which of course he walked perfectly on. He wasn't wearing gloves, but pretty gold bracelets, and around his neck was a black pendant hanging by a thin gold chain. His hair was done up, held together by multiple sparkling clips, and there was only a light dusting of makeup on his face.

"Would you believe," he said lightly, as he reached the bottom, "that the lady at the dress store thought I was a girl?" he giggled slightly. "Liet?"

He didn't look like a girl, Toris thought, but he didn't look like a boy either. He looked like... something else. Something of ethereal beauty and otherworldly grace. He looked like...

He looked like Feliks.

Toris felt tears prickling in the back of his eyes, and at that moment he knew – if there was anyone in this world he wanted to go to a prom with, from now until forever – it would be Feliks.

"Let's go," he whispered gently, taking his love's hands in his own. Feliks, wide-eyed, leaned closer, moving one hand to grasp Toris' tie. Their lips almost met.

"If you think you're getting away without pictures, you are sorely mistaken."

**A/N I feel so evil. This chapter was just too short. And another cliffy. I'm sorry.**

**...but next chapter = prom night. Fun things are gonna happen on prom night. ;D**

**Reviews, um, I don't know. Make next chapter more explicit~**


	16. I Love You, Until The End Of Time

**A/N OH MY GOD. Tell me, does everyone have such a complicated life as I do? Really, just when I think I have time to sit down and write in peace, SOMETHING happens that leaves me buried in deep shit for another god knows HOW long. UGH. I should just cut off my ties with the rest of humanity until this is over.**

**Eh, but why am I complaining to you guys? I should be thanking you for sticking with me for so long. And begging for your forgiveness, for being such an ASS and not updating. I'm sorry. :(**

**Disclaimer: Hetalia belongs to Hidekaz Hiramuya. Come What May belongs to Baz Luhrman and Moulin Rouge. I own naught but my own ideas.**

**The show must go on...**

_Chapter 16 – I Love You, Until the End of Time_

The lights of the street reflected off the window, casting shadows all across Toris' face. Keeping his eyes fixated on the road, he could feel Feliks watching him from the other seat. Heat flushed his face. "Why are you staring at me?"

"Because," the blonde said quietly, "you look so handsome."

This only caused Toris to blush even more. Feliks leaned forward, brushing hair out of his eyes. "No, really!" he said again, louder this time. "You look, like, a knight in shining armour, or something. But, you know, without the armour."

Toris bit his lip to keep from laughing. Sure, what Feliks was saying filled him with warmth from his head to his toes, but that didn't make what he said any less funny.

Feliks pouted. "Don't laugh at me," he complained. "Where are we going, anyway?"

"You'll see," was all Toris would say in reply, hoping he sounded as mysterious as he thought he did.

After a while, Feliks grew more impatient. "Are we there yet?" He whined, drumming his (perfectly manicured) nails against the window. "Liet, come on, tell me, where are we going? And how long is it gonna take?"

All of a sudden, he slammed his hand down, making Toris jump a mile and swerve the car. "Feliks, what in the-"

But Feliks was already talking in his mile-a-minute voice. "I totally forgot, I have something to tell you! My mom and your mom found out something really, totally freaky about my dad!"

Toris, who personally was more interested in not crashing the car, hardly even heard what he said. "Oh? What's that?"

"My dad is totally the guy your mom used to work for."

Maybe, in hindsight, Feliks should have mentioned this after they had put the car in park.

After all, he hadn't stopped screaming his head off until well after Toris had slammed on the brakes to stop their wildly spinning car. But really, what other reaction was he supposed to have?"

Breathing heavily, and knuckles white on the steering wheel, Toris said very calmly, "Feliks, what do you mean by that?"

Feliks, who had only just pulled his head out from between his knees, wailed in hysterics, "What are you doing? Omigod, Liet, do you even know that you totally could have just killed us there? Like, what were you thinking? Jeez, If I had known that you were going to react like that..." he caught sight of Toris, glaring daggers at him. "Eep! What is your problem?"

"What," Toris said again, "do you mean by that? That my mom used to work for your dad?"

"Oh, Liet," Feliks rolled his eyes. "Yeah, Mom, told me last night. Apparently, you know, when we were having dinner at your place? And our moms went all weepy with their life stories? Well, they actually figured out that my dad used to run the, um, underground society your mom used to work in." He waved a hand in front of Toris' face. "Is any of this, like, reaching you?"

But inside Toris' mind, the gears were working at full speed. So that was why the picture of Feliks' father looked so familiar. Because that was the man he had been hanging up the phone on for 12 years.

"I don't believe it..." he whispered. "And... and you just found this out?"

"Yeah," Feliks shrugged. "Well, neither of them seemed too weirded out by it. I mean, Mom always suspected he had some kind of secret life, so I think she's just happy to know what it was." Toris started to say something, but before he could, Feliks pressed a finger to his lips. "And before you say, 'Omygod, why didn't they tell me?', I think it was because they wanted me to tell you. You know, so you wouldn't take it so seriously. Like, CRASHING A CAR seriously." He patted his hair, to make sure it was still in place. "Honestly, all this stress is probably giving me split ends."

And Toris began to laugh.

He couldn't help it. He honestly couldn't help the laughs that bubbled up and over, even though the situation they were in was anything but funny. And Feliks started to laugh, too, and their combined chuckles echoed all through the car as they pulled out, and continued on their way.

The laughter stopped short as soon as Feliks continued his endless tirade of "Are we there yet?", of course.

**xXx**

"Okay," Toris sighed, finally putting the car into park. "We are here."

Feliks scrunched up his nose. "I don't even know where 'here' is, anymore. I mean, a couple of minutes ago, we were at the park, but now..."

Indeed, the place they were looked a little – for lack of a better analogy – like the home of the harbinger of doom. The trees were tall, black, and blocked out almost all light from the sky above them. Not that there was much light to begin with, for the only piece of the moon was a tiny sliver. Feliks shivered as he stepped outside. "Okay, I'm officially spooked now, Liet. You can take me somewhere better now, please."

Toris merely smirked softly, and led Feliks by the hand down the path. "Close your eyes, and don't open them again until I tell you to."

Feliks made a face, but closed them anyway. Toris, seeing the coast was clear, turned his thoughts inward.

He was still completely shaken by what he had heard. But he wasn't going to let it show – not if Feliks so obviously didn't care. How can he _not _care_, _was what Toris really wanted to know. How could his own mother not care? After all, if she'd found out a week ago, surely she would have shown some signs of discomfort, wouldn't she?

But no, he realized, she had been even more chipper then usual all week. _Maybe she really doesn't care, _he thought with a start. Knowing his mother, she'd probably thought it was funny.

Like how Feliks thought it was funny.

"Lie-e-et, can I open my eyes now?"

"No."

_Maybe I should stop worrying about it, too_, he mused, as they turned a corner. He worried about too many things already. _This_, he thought, _is something I maybe should just... not worry about. Not even care._

And as they came into view of the mini-prom Toris had set up, he knew. There was no way he was going to worry about anything. Not tonight.

"You can open your eyes, now."

As Feliks opened his eyes, he gasped. "Oh, my, God, Liet! Did you do all this?"

Toris nodded, unable to keep the grin off his face. Feliks was utterly speechless. "I-but-what-_how?_"

They were inside the campground, which should have been closed at the time of year. Their campsite overlooked the lake, and the water glimmered with the light of the hundreds of candles he had lit earlier that day. The only thing there, besides the candles, was the picnic table, laden with a stereo playing the kind of romantic music you heard in movies.

Feliks stepped into the clearing, his heels crunching on the gravel below his feet. He spun around, eyes glimmering with what Toris now realized were tears. "Liet, this is beautiful! Like, how did you do it?"

"I asked a favour of the park ranger," he said, laughing. "He says he's willing to overlook this side of the campground tonight, as long as we don't make a mess."

"He would do that for us?" Feliks wondered aloud. He'd always found the park ranger to be a distant and unfriendly type. "Why?"

Toris shrugged. "Unsolved mystery. But, who are we to dictate what Mr Wang wants?" He grabbed Feliks by the hand. "But there's more! Come here!"

"What? _More!"_

Indeed, at the edge of the campsite, overlooking the lake, and surrounded by more candles, was a thick blanket laid over the grass. Feliks covered his mouth with his hand. "Liet, this is amazing." He spun around and threw his arms around Toris' neck. "Thank you," he whispered, breath tickling the hairs on his neck. "This is everything I hoped for and more."

Toris wrapped his arms around Feliks' waist, and pulled him even tighter. "You're welcome, he murmured back. "Now, are we going to do what we are supposed to do, or what?"

Feliks pulled back, looking at Toris with a very confused look in his wide eyes. "And what are we supposed to be doing?"

Smirking, in the most unlike-Toris curl of lips he could muster, Toris grabbed his hands and spun him around.

"Dance."

**xXx**

'_Never knew I could feel like this_

_Like I've never seen the sky before_

_Want to vanish inside your kiss_

_Every day I love you more and more'_

"What is this?" Feliks wondered, as they swayed slowly under the starlight.

"I don't know," Toris answered. "I just asked Elisabeta for a bunch of songs to dance to. I think it's from a movie. Moulin Rouge, or something."

"Oh."

After almost two hours of straight dancing, both were feeling slightly more than tired. They had jammed, Soulja Boy'd, attempted to waltz, and ballroom danced until neither could breathe. Toris discovered he was actually a fairly good dancer, and that Feliks knew all the words to 'Friday.'

All in all, it had been far beyond anything a silly school could have put together.

Now, they settled on simply slow dancing, which required no effort, but was as intimate as either of them had ever been. Toris could feel Feliks' heartbeat, drumming against his chest.

"Liet," he said softly. Toris pulled him closer, if that was even possible.

"Yes?"

"Do you love me?"

The question took Toris by surprise. "Of course," he replied. "I always have. I tell you every time I see you. Why?"

"Do you think... that we'll be together forever?"

Now he knew why Feliks' heart was beating so fast. "Well, I don't know."He bit back a laugh as the blond snapped back to look at him. "Do you want to be together forever?"

"Yes!" Feliks cried, clearly distressed. "Like, I love you, Liet! And I totally wanna be with you 100% of the time! I, like, don't ever wanna be separated from you, and like, if you wanted to, I mean, we could totally-" He stopped as he saw Toris laughing. "Like, what is so funny?"

"I'm only teasing you," Toris chuckled. "Of course I want to be together forever."

"Liet!" Feliks punched him in the chest. "That was so not cool."

"Ow!" Still laughing, he rubbed the spot that had just been assaulted. "Why were you asking, anyway?"

"Well, because," Feliks mumbled. "I was just thin king about, well, where we should go. After high school, I mean."

Toris considered it. "I don' actually know," he mused. "I've never thought about life after high school." He looked Feliks dead in the eyes. "But I know that if I'm with you, I'll be able to do anything."

Feliks smiled.

The song ended. They both glanced over at the now silent stereo. "That was the last song," Toris observed.

Feliks gasped. "Oh no! Liet, we were totally supposed to kiss during that song!"

"According to who?"

"Like, the rules of everything! Kiss me now," he commanded imperiously.

Toris raised an eyebrow. "Ooh, so pushy," he teased. Then, seeing Feliks' angry glare fixated on him, he relented. "Oh, all right. Come over here."

Their lips collided, and barely had they begun before Feliks slipped his tongue into Toris' mouth. Letting out a groan, he pulled not so gently towards the blanket. Losing their footing, they tumbled over backwards, Feliks landing square on top of Toris.

Pushing him down, Feliks slipped his lithe fingers under the brunet's shirt. Toris moaned breathily into the kiss, grabbing Feliks by the hips and pulling them together. Their kisses grew more heated with each passing second, they pressed as hard as they could, Toris felt determined to reach every inch of the others mouth with his tongue. They danced and fought, with hands running wild and hips sliding together. It wasn't long after that they broke apart that he realized his jacket and tie were gone, and that half of his shirt was unbuttoned, and Feliks' dress was falling off his shoulders.

"Are you sure?" He whispered, his voice sounding husky even to his own ears. Feliks gulped, and nodded his assent.

"Do you have..."

"Yes."

Their breathy moans echoed out into the night sky, as love was made in the candlelight.

**xXx**

The violet eyes watched them, filled to the brim with malice. The hand lifted a phone to his ear, the harsh ringing vibrating against his eardrum.

"_Hello?"_

"Da, this is Mr Laurinaitis?"

"_Who are you?"_

"My name is Ivan, and I am a friend of Toris'. Are you aware of what he is doing right now?"

A smile curled on his lips. _Because if I can't have you, my precious little Lithuanian, then no one can._

**A/N Ivan the Terrible is on the loose, folks.**

**I hope that was enough to make up for my epic three-week absence. Grgh.**

**They need condoms, because you can still get STI's like HIV and Aids through anal sex. Just spreading the good word, peeps.**

**You don't have to review, but it would be really, really nice if you did. *Hopeful smile***


	17. Come What May, Come What May

**A/N Ugghh. I went home sick today. This does not bode well, because I am leaving for the BC student film festival – tomorrow! Ah, I really hope I feel better by then.**

**Actually, I've been feeling really shitty for the last two weeks... eh... this isn't good DX**

**Disclaimer: Hetalia belongs to Hidekaz Hiramuya. Come What May belongs to Baz Luhrman and Moulin Rouge. I own naught but my own ideas.**

**The show must go on...**

_Chapter Seventeen – Come What May, Come What May_

They woke up the next morning aching all over, but feeling no less happy. Toris stretched out, wincing as his back cracked "Ow."

Beside him, Feliks rolled over, and smiled blearily at him. "Hi."

Toris groaned. Not because he was unhappy, oh, no, but because a sudden thought had crossed his mind. He was going to have to clean up all of their mess. He made a face. _Probably should have thought of that earlier. _

He heaved himself up, finding pieces of clothing and pulling them on hastily. Feliks giggled as he watched, finding it entertaining how Toris struggled to make himself look slightly presentable.

Toris glared lightly, pulling his tie on. "Do you, you know, want to come give me a hand here?"

Feliks shrugged. "Nah." He winked playfully.

An hour later, (it would have taken half as much time if Feliks had only _helped_, Toris repeated over and over again) they were packed tight into the car; every single candle had somehow been shoved in the back.

"The whole car smells like wax," Feliks observed, chewing on a piece of his hair.

"That's generally what happens when you fill it with candles," Toris replied, stifling a yawn. "Now, whatever you do, don't look Mr Wang in the eyes."

Indeed, as they rolled past the gate, the park ranger glanced up at them, a knowing smirk on his face. Both boys sunk a little in their seats.

"Oh, my God, he totally knows what we did, that is sooo embarrassing!" Feliks groaned, burying his red face in his hands. "And why is he looking at us like that? It's too creepy!"

Toris was looking dead ahead, eyes focused on the road only. "I told you not to look at him."

"I couldn't help it!"

"And everyone is going to know what we did, Feliks, e stayed there the whole night."

"Oh. Yeah, good point." Feliks sank even lower. "God, that sucks."

A few moments of silence passed, before he spoke again. "Ivan and Mr Wang should totally get together. They are both so creepy."

They had to stop the car to get their laughs out.

**xXx**

When they rolled up in front of Feliks' house, Emma was sitting out on the front porch with coffee in her hand. As their car came into sight, her face lit up and she waved. "Hi, guys!"

Now, curled up on their couch, the three of them were looking through the pictures from last night, which Emma had apparently rushed out to the store and developed them at soon as was humanly possible.

As Toris studied the pictures, he noticed something different in them from any other picture he had taken. His face. Whereas before, in almost every photograph of him existing there was something heavy weighing down on his face, like a worry, a shadow that clung to the corners of his eyes. It was the kind of thing you could easily, something had happened to him that had made him lose track of himself.

But in all of these, he was laughing, smiling, sometimes even blurring on the screen. He laughed even looking at them, at that carefree look on his face

_Is that what I look like when I'm with him?_ He thought, although he already knew the answer. _Yes._

He looked up to see Feliks shoving a picture kin his face. "What? What is it?"

"It's for you, silly," Feliks grinned. "You know, for when you ever get lonely and need to think of me."

He glanced down at the picture and immediately flushed. It was of the two of them; Feliks was smiling widely at the camera, but Toris was looking at Feliks, a tender look in his eyes. He gulped.

"I didn't know you could look so infatuated," Feliks snickered. "You look like one fo those heroines from a cheesy romance novel. You know, the ones on the cover, that always look so-"

"Yeah, yeah, I know," he grumbled, grabbing the picture and shoving it in his pocket anyway. Feliks just smiled wider.

Two hours and an unfair game of Monopoly later, Toris decided his mom was probably home by now, and that he really should get going. So he shook Emma's hand, kissed Feliks goodbye, and left.

**xXx**

When he got home, there was an unfamiliar car parked in his driveway. He pulled up to the other side of the street, and got out cautiously. Why was there someone at his house?

Gently, he opened the door, calling out softly, "Mom? Are you home?"

A person appeared at the end of the hallway, but it wasn't his mother. Nor was it Eduard, or Raivis, or even Ivan.

It was his father.

"Dad!" He gasped. Happiness filled him like a bubble, but it burst almost instantly – last time he'd spoken with his father, things hadn't ended very well. And the look on his face wasn't exactly the happy, welcoming kind.

Henrietta appeared behind him, and Toris was startled to see tears in her eyes. "Toris, oh, honey!" She ran forward and wrapped him in a tight hug. "I'm so sorry," she whispered. "I won't let him take you, I promise!"

"What? Mom-" He looked over her shoulder. "Dad, what is going on?"

"I don't approve of what you are doing with that other boy," he stated, lips curling. "You are my son, and now you are coming with me. I'll beat it all out of you if I have to."

Fear coiled in his stomach, and he pulled away. "What?" Going with his dad... his homophobic dad... it meant going away, away from school, away from his life, away from Feliks – "No!"

Ed and Raivis had appeared now, too, and Raivis was crying his eyes out. "Where are you taking him? Please don't leave, Toris!"

John stepped forward and grabbed Toris by the arm, and began to pull him out to the car. "Don't be so upset, kid. You get to go live with you father. Aren't you happy?"

"No!" Toris attempted to wrench himself from the vice-like grip. "I don't want to go with you! I want to stay _here!"_

John grunted roughly. "I know very well why you want to stay here," he snarled, "but I won't let that happen! Things like last night are never going to happen, now that I'm around."

Toris was so surprised, that for a second, he forgot to struggle. "H-how did you find out about last night?" He stammered.

"Your friend called me. Ivan." He sighed as he slammed the car door shut, and went around his side as Toris scrambled with the lock. "Now, that is a good kid," he stated, "with a good head on his shoulders."

"Are you kidding me?" Toris shouted over the roar of the car as it started. "Ivan is – ack!" He gave up trying to talk in favour of his battle with the door.

But the next thing he knew, the car was moving, too fast for him to even attempt getting out. Crushed and defeated, he slammed his head against the window and struggled not to cry.

_Ivan,_ _you bastard,_ he thought, a single tear escaping from under his eyelid. _What have you done?_

**A/N Hooray for an early update. Making up for last week. **

**The return of the evil father! Oh no! What is everyone going to do now! *flails arms helplessly***

**REVIEWS MAKE ME HEALTHY SO I CAN GO TOMORROW 8D**


	18. I Will Love You, Until My Dying Day

**A/N DAMN YOU WEBSITE! It's not letting me reply to reviews... and thanks to some major screw-up on my laptops part I couldn't get the pm thing to work either. Which is really too bad, since I wanted to thank you all personally for the wonderful reviews you give and the get-better wishes, which totally worked, by the way~**

**I hope you can all forgive me... and my faulty laptop... **

**But aside from all that, I have some bittersweet news. This is the last actual chapter of Come What May. All that's left after this is the epilogue. *fights back tears* I'm seriously gonna miss writing this. It was such an adventure and a learning experience for me. And of course, I'm gonna miss all my beautiful readers and reviewers, more than I think I can say. **

**On with the show :')**

_Chapter Eighteen – I Will Love You, Until My Dying Day_

It was raining outside.

The sky was grey; dark, oppressive clouds covering up every inch of what might have been the sun. Staring out the glass, Toris sat curled up on the bed, his eyes dim and lifeless. The room around him wasn't his own; it was dull, with white walls and no furniture, only the bed beside the window he was looking through.

The room reflected his mood.

Out on the street, children in bright rain boots jumped in puddles, making it splash onto the road. In a twisted kind of revenge, the next car that drove by went straight through the puddle, soaking the children to the bone. Wailing, they ran back to their houses, taking every inch of colour and life away from the cold, wet street.

The street reflected his mood.

Toris closed his eyes, causing the pools of tears to flow over. His thin shoulders shook as he choked back sobs. He didn't want his father to hear him, to come in, to yell, to assure him that everything would be better now. Because it wouldn't be. It would never be, because Feliks wasn't here beside him.

There was no colour if Feliks wasn't there.

The rain continued to fall, running in rivets down the glass. It was cold. Unforgiving. It covered the world in a blank haze. It was like the sky was crying.

The rain reflected his mood.

**xXx**

Feliks paced back and forth beside the phone. He was tempted to call Toris again, but every time he had, no one had picked up the phone. He would have gone over to his house to check for himself, but he was to shy.

But he was worried about his Liet! He hadn't shown up at school, been returning any of his calls, not even Elisabeta knew where he was. A cruel fear pushed up at his heart – _he doesn't want to see you anymore – _but he pushed it back down. _This is not the time for that, _he scolded himself_. Liet could be in trouble!_

Making up his mind, he picked up the phone and called again.

This time, the person on the other side picked up, and Feliks jumped inside. _Score! _"Hello? Liet?"

"_Oh, Feliks, it's you," _the person said, and Feliks deflated when he realized it was Henrietta. "_I'm sorry we haven't been able to get in touch."_

"Oh, that's okay!" Feliks said cheerfully. "Where's Liet? He hasn't been at school, is he like, sick or something?"

"_I..." _Henrietta's breath hitched in her throat._ "He's...um..."_

Something cold began to grow in Feliks' stomach. "He's what?" He asked fearfully, almost not wanting an answer.

"_His father came by, and he...he took him..."_

And the whole world turned grey.

Feliks began to shake. "Took him? Like, took him where?" Panic crept into his voice, and it raised a few octaves.

"_Feliks, hon... just... please come over here!"_

She didn't have to ask twice.

**xXx**

"Toris, come down and eat your dinner."

He didn't move.

The voice behind the door spoke again. "You haven't eaten since you got here, Toris. You better come or you'll die of starvation."

"Maybe that's okay." The words were out of his mouth before he could stop them, and he regretted it the second he said them, because, a loud bang echoed on the door.

"Damnit, Toris! I will not have you acting like this because of some stupid boy!"

White-hot anger flared up in him, and he stormed across the room and flung the door open to stare into his father's face. "He is not some stupid boy!" He yelled, rage amplifying his voice and making John back up a step. "His name is Feliks Łukasiewicz, and he's beautiful and wonderful and fabulous and _I love him!"_

The harsh _slap_ resounded against the walls. Toris shook, his cheek stinging. John glared down at him, looking angrier than Toris had ever seen him. It made him quail in fear.

"Don't talk that way about another boy," he growled. "It makes me sick."

Toris took a deep breath, and look straight back into those cold brown eyes. "I will never stop talking that way about him," he said quietly, "because I love him. And just because you've decided to take me away from everything I love, doesn't mean that I will never find a way back!" He was shouting now. "You can't change who I am, Dad! Just like you can't change the fact that I'm only staying _here_ in the hopes that he might find me!"

"He will never find you!" John cut in, roaring. "I made sure of that!"

"Oh, yeah?" Toris shot back. "You made sure? Well, let me tell you something. Feliks has been through more in his life than you could ever guess! Something stupid like this isn't going to stop him! He won't give up until he finds me!"

"And what makes you sure that he will even bother looking?" John sneered, giving one last attempt to break his spirit.

Toris was silent, and for a moment, John thought he'd won. But he was proved wrong when a fist made connection to his face, and he reeled backwards, stumbling down the hall.

"He will come for me," Toris' voice rang strong, and clear as a bell. "Because he loves me. I know he does."

And he slammed his door shut, leaving John staring at the wood through a painful haze.

**xXx**

"But.. he can't just do that!" Emma protested. "You have custody over Toris, don't you?"

"I have custody over all my kids, yes," Henrietta replied dully. "But John is threatening to tell the police of my involvement in the underground world if I tell them." Emma put a hand on her shoulder, and she sighed. "I've gone over and over it in my head, but there's no way for me to get him back without going to jail myself. And what is the point in getting him back just so I can leave him again?"

Feliks was sitting on the couch in Toris' house, staring blankly out the window at the rain. He could barely hear the conversation that was echoing above his head.

He felt so cold; from head to toe his skin felt like ice. Even in his totally gorgeous pink sweater and fresh skinny jeans – all he could think about was how Toris would have loved it if he saw it. And that just made him feel disgusting.

A noise from across the room made him look up, and through bleary eyes he saw Toris' brother – Raivis, was it? – gesturing at him. Feliks cocked his head. _What?_ The boy made another sign – _follow me_ – before disappearing behind a door.

Making sure no one was paying attention to him, Feliks slipped off the couch and crept across the floor, careful not to make a sound. With one last glance at his mom, he went to follow Raivis.

Behind the door, he discovered that there was a set of rickety stairs. He stepped lightly as he walked down, careful not to make any creak. "Where does this even lead to?" he murmured aloud.

At the bottom, he turned to corner to see Raivis standing in a doorway. "What is all this about?" asked Feliks impatiently. "Why did I have to come down here?"

Raivis only shook his head, and opened the door, leading Feliks in behind him. The blond gasped as he was faced with a room filled from bottom to top with electronics, bright screens illuminating the otherwise dark room.

At the center of the room, a swivel chair turned, and Toris' other brother appeared. "Feliks, welcome," he said, causing the other boy to jump a mile in the air. "Thank you for coming."

"Jeez, way to give me a heart attack," Feliks complained rubbing his chest. He was getting tired of all this suspense. "What exactly did you call me down here for?"

"We have thought of a way to get Toris back."

Feliks snapped his head up. "What? What are we doing down here, then? We have to go upstairs, tell everyone-"

Eduard held up a hand. "No," he said, "this is not something my mother will approve of. And I'm sure yours won't either."

"But we need your help to do it, Feliks," Raivis spoke up for the first time, inching forward. "I...we really miss Toris!" he cried, tears filling his eyes. "I want to see him again! Please, of, please say you'll help us!"

"I..." Feliks couldn't speak. The look in Raivis' eyes was so despairing, he wanted to run across the room and pull him into a hug. But instead, he turned to Eduard with a cold determination in his eyes. "How can we do it?"

Ed smiled. "Excellent," he said, pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose. "Here is the plan..."

**xXx**

It had been three days. But it had finally stopped raining.

Toris was standing at the window, with his forehead pressed to the glass. It was cold, really cold. He felt like he was leaning on ice.

Everything was cold.

John was out; Toris couldn't remember what he had been doing. Shopping, maybe. Trying to find some food that Toris might eat. As if it would work.

The phone rang. It's harsh, loud tone made him jump, and he wondered if he should pick it up.

_Why not?_

He picked it up and held the receiver to his ear. "Hello? Residence of John Laurinaitis?" His voice sounded dead, even to his own ears.

"_Omigod. Liet? Is that you?"_

His heart plummeted to his stomach. The world slowly seeped Technicolor. "F-Feliks!" A smile threatened to break his face. "Feliks!"

"_Liet!" _If it hadn't been for the laughter bubbling through the other end, Toris might have thought he was crying. _"Oh, Liet, I'm so happy to hear your voice! Like, I missed you so much!"_

"Feliks, I..." And now that he could finally speak to him, all the things Toris had wanted to say completely slipped his mind. All that mattered, all he could think about, was how Feliks had found him.

"_Liet, we're going to get you back. Your brothers have this totally amazing plan, and all you have to do-"_

"Feliks," Toris interrupted, suddenly curious. "How did you get this number?" He was still amazed. "How did you find me?"

"_What? Oh, Ed hacked it, or something. He's this total technologic wizard, you know."_

Of course. Ed. Never before in his life had Toris wanted to hug his brother so badly. "Yeah, I know."

"_Anyways, this is the plan."_

**xXx**

John came back inside, laden with shopping bags. He dropped the car keys on his table, and the resounding clatter they made echoed throughout the seemingly empty house. He winced slightly. "Toris? Are you home?"

"Yeah. I'm home."

The voice came from directly behind him, and made him jump. His eye hadn't healed yet. He whirled around, to see Toris standing in the doorway, twirling the car keys around his finger.

"Yikes. You... you scared me, kid." John attempted to joke, massaging his chest. "What, uh, what are you doing with my keys?"

"Leaving." Toris didn't move, continuing to watch his father for his reaction.

"L-leaving?" He didn't seem to understand. "Uh, but, where are you gonna go?"

"Back to Feliks."

And then it all seemed to fall into place for John. His face twisted into something ugly, and for the first time, something akin to fear poked at Toris' heart.

"How many times," he growled, "did I say that I don't want his name spoken in this house!"

"_Feliks!"_ Toris nearly screamed. "Feliks, Feliks, Feliks, Feliks _Feliks_ FELIKS _FELIKS!"_

"STOP!" John roared, and swung his fist forward. Toris reeled backwards, crashing into the door. Without a second's hesitation, he swung it open and ran outside.

With his father hot on his heels, he raced towards the car, throwing the door open and closed, feeling the glass reverberate as he slammed it. His heart pounded in his ears.

He turned the key, and it roared to life around him. He felt John slam against the door, and he screamed. Subconsciously, it made him wonder if any of the neighbours noticed.

He floored the gas, and flew away, hairpin-turning out the driveway, and speeding down the road.

Now that he was safely away, he became aware of the blood dripping down his face. He reached up, and realized it was coming from his mouth. That punch really hurt.

From behind him, he heard the roaring of another engine. Glancing in the mirror, he saw a motorcycle following, the man riding it not wearing a helmet. With a grim satisfaction, he saw it was his father. He glanced at the blood on his fingers, then at John, then at the blood again.

_Excellent._

As the sun began to set, he pulled up to the empty street corner Feliks had told him about. There was no one there, but he pulled the car to a stop and got out anyway. John would be there any minute.

He stood, under the flooding light of the streetlamp, watching warily. Indeed, in almost no time at all, the black motorcycle skidded around the corner and screeched to a halt. John got off, not even bothering to balance his bike, letting it crash to the ground as he walked forward.

"Now, why did you have to go and do something like that?" John asked, his voice shaking with restrained anger. "We were getting along so nicely!"

"No we weren't!" Toris spat. "The second you hung up the phone on me, all those months ago, that ended any hope of us getting along!"

"What has made you this way?" John exploded. "You never used to raise your voice to anyone! You were this quiet, cowardly little kid, who would get so happy when his daddy called him-"

"That little kid is gone!" Toris stormed forward to glare John straight in the eyes. "That kid was bullied, abused, unhappy, but he never said anything about it to anyone!" He was shocked to find tears in his eyes. He wiped them furiously. "That little kid never met Feliks!"

The name did exactly what Toris expected it to do. John punched him again, and Toris purposefully fell to the ground. A small smile played on his lips. _Way to go, Dad._

"_What the hell are you smiling about?"_ John shrieked.

"Mr John Laurinaitis, you are so totally under arrest!"

From where he lay on the ground, Toris began to laugh, and laugh, and laugh.

He watched as a police officer came out from under the bushes, and pushed John against his car, handcuffing him. "John Laurinaitis, you are under arrest for hate crime, namely, inflicting physical harm on your son because of his sexuality."

"Yeah, and you can't even deny it, 'cause we have it on tape!"

Looking up, he saw Feliks, standing over him in one of those Halloween sexy police officer outfits, complete with leather boots going all the way up his bare legs.

"Why am I not surprised you have one of those?"

Feliks grinned wildly. "I missed you too, Liet."

Within seconds, he had dropped to the ground and they were wrapped up in each other's arms. Feliks pulled back to wipe some of the blood off Toris' lips. "Are you, like, okay? That looks like it hurts."

"I'm fine. I am so, completely fine." Toris closed his eyes and pressed his face into the other boy's chest, not thinking about what was going to happen now, how this might be plastered all over the news, how angry his mother was going to be with him; and he did the one thing he had been unable to do for the last three days. He slept.

Feliks smoothed a stray piece of hair away from his face, gazing lovingly at those tired green eyes. "I heard everything you said, Liet," he whispered softly. "And I love you so, so much."

From under a streetlight, he caught sight of something moving. He recognized Ivan, creeping in the dark.

He started to move, but Toris was too heavy, so he settled for a hard glare. But he noticed, suddenly, that there was an odd look in Ivan's usually cold eyes. He couldn't place it, but... could it be... no, it couldn't possibly be. Ivan was incapable of feeling human emotion, namely the sadness of rejection.

He pulled Toris tighter as Ivan turned and left, without a word.

Toris looked up at Feliks. "What is it?"

Feliks started. "Like, nothing," he said warmly. "I just think that our troubles are finally ending."

As he drifted off, it started to rain again. And Toris, in his half-awake daze, saw the rain in a new light; not as if the sky was crying, but as a new beginning, of a new life.

**A/N So, I'm not crying at all...**

**I'll see you all at the epilogue. :)**


	19. Epilogue

**A/N So, this is it, huh? The end of an adventure. Ah, but it was one worth taking, and who knows? Perhaps the start of another one.**

**I want to thank, everyone, one last time, who read/reviewed/alerted/favourite this story. Thank you to everyone who stuck with me from start to finish, I know who you are; thank you to everyone who thought, 'hey, this might be good' and gave it a try. This story is the most popular LietPol story here to date, and being the LietPol fan that I am, it means a hella lot to me. More than I can say. And it all happened because of you.**

**So, thank you.**

**Disclaimer: Hetalia belongs to Hidekaz Hiramuya. Come What May belongs to Baz Luhrman and Moulin Rouge. I own naught but my own ideas.**

**On with the show!**

_Epilogue_

_Stockholm, Sweden, 2 years later_

Toris' eyes fluttered open. The harsh white light from outside burned his retinas, and he hissed, squeezing them shut. He felt around the bed, but no one else was there. _Damnit._

Still keeping his eyes closed, he pulled himself out of bed and stumbled over to where he thought the window was. A hand making contact with cool glass confirmed it, and he felt around, looking for the curtains. They were either gone or he wasn't where he thought he was.

Finally giving up the battle, he slowly opened his lids to let his eyes adjust to the blinding white light. When he could finally see, the first sight he was greeted with was great, white snowflakes falling from the sky.

A smile tugged at his lips. Of course. Today was...

Out in the front yard, four figures were dancing around in the snow. Toris watched them for a few minutes, before one caught sight of him in the window, waving his arms frantically and mouthing 'Come down here!'

Slipping a housecoat on over his pyjamas and sliding into his slippers, he made his was down past the sparkling tree in the living room, past his mom making hot chocolate in the kitchen, and out the front door, where he immediately had to duck from a projectile snowball.

"Oops! Sorry, Toris!" A young voice called. "I meant to hit Raivis!"

"Always a pleasure, Peter," Toris mumbled, combing a hand through his hair. "What are you guys doing?"

"Having a snowball fight!" yelled Peter happily, before he was ploughed in the face with a giant snowball. "ACK!"

Loud, golden laughter echoed across the driveway, and Toris followed the sound of it to see him, doubled over in laughter, tears of malice leaking from his catlike, green eyes.

"Like, oh, my God! Your face, Peter! Oh, I wish you could have seen it, you look _sooo_ funny!"

Suddenly, the blond caught sight of Toris, and a glad cry escaped his lips. _"Liet!"_ He shrieked, dashing (as well as a person can dash in waist deep snow) towards him. Laughing, he reached up, and Toris grabbed his hand, pulling him out of the snow and up onto the step and into his arms.

"Merry Christmas, Feliks."

"Like, merry Christmas, Liet."

Their lips met, and Toris delighted in how cold the others' were. For a moment, he wondered how life had come to this; that he could kiss Feliks in broad daylight in front of everyone and no one would even care.

"EW, what are you guys doing? No one wants to _see_ that! PDA score four!"

Well, almost anyone.

"Shut up Peter!" snarled Feliks, promptly attacking Peter by jumping on him and burying him under the snow, ignoring Toris' yelp and Peter's own cries of mercy.

Toris glanced across the street to see Berwald and Tino, their neighbours, sitting out on the deck with steaming mugs. Wrapped snugly in blankets and each other. Toris smiled nervously at them; Berwald could be really scary, but the two merely waved back at them.

Peter resurfaced from the snow. "Mom, Dad, help me!" He called over to them. Tino began to whistle, as though he couldn't see anything. Feliks cackled, and continued his assault.

Toris couldn't help but laugh at the scene. Peter may have been Berwald and Tino's adopted son, but that didn't stop them from delighting in seeing him getting his ass whooped with snowballs.

**xXx**

"Hey, hey, Liet, can I have that?"

They wandered through the street, the snow crunching pleasantly under their feet. Christmas lights illuminated every window, lighting up the already bright and busy street. Feliks was gasping over almost everything he saw, asking Toris rapid-fire if he could have this and that and this and that and this and that until Toris slapped a hand over his mouth to shut him up.

"Well, I was only asking," he remarked sullenly, pouting.

It may have been Christmas, but Henrietta and Emma were worked at a women's help center and had to be there today, so Feliks and Toris saw it as an opportunity to spend the entire day out and alone, something they hadn't had much time for since moving to Sweden a year and a half ago. What with everyone working full time, Ed graduating, and Raivis finally entering high school, things had been incredibly hectic – but in a pleasant way, Toris felt.

A snowflake landed on his nose, and he brushed it off. When he looked up, Feliks was at another window, his nose pressed up to the glass. "Liet, come look at this!"

Sighing, he made his way over, and looked at what Feliks was looking at. As he caught sight of it, something in his stomach twisted.

A gorgeous, sparkling diamond ring, set against midnight blue velvet. Feliks sighed, and his breath fogged up the glass in front of him. "Oh, Liet, isn't it pretty?"

"Beautiful," he agreed, although his eyes were more focused on the price tag. Good God, that was a lot of money. There was no way in hell any of them would be able to buy it.

_Oh, well,_ he thought. _One_ _day._

As he looked out over the street, a familiar face suddenly caught his attention. "Feliks," he hissed, tugging on his jacket. "Feliks, look! Is that-?"

The blond whipped his head around, eyes scanning the crowd, before he caught sight of who Toris was talking about. He gasped. "Omigod, I can't effing believe it. It's-"

They rushed forward, before finally landing right in front of their old chemistry teacher.

He turned, a look of surprise on his face. "Feliks? Toris?" His eyes narrowed. "Is that you two?" They opened in shock. "It is you two! I didn't know you were in Sweden!"

Feliks laughed. "Yeah, we like, moved here after we graduated." He leaned in. "So, like, how's the school been?"

"Oh, boy," he rubbed his temples. "The school has... changed, since you two were there. You started a revolution, you know."

Toris raised his eyebrows. "A revolution?"

"Yes," he sighed, "one where almost half the school came out of the closet this year."

"What?" Feliks cried happily. "Are you like, totally serious?" He laughed. "Oh, that is so cool! Wait, who all came out, I have to know."

He started ticking off names on his fingers. "The star quarterback, Alfred," he began, "The school prefect, Arthur, your friend Kiku, and a whole bunch of kids from the graduating class before you." His cheeks flushed suddenly. "Um, including those infamous three, Francis, Gilbert, and Antonio-"

"Wasn't one of them your brother?" Feliks asked teasingly. Their teacher blushed harder.

"Yes, and – and those Italian twins, they-"

"Hey, Ludwig!"

They turned at the sound of another voice, and another familiar face came bounding into view. He wrapped his arms around Mr Beildschmidt's waist and hugged him tight. "Ve, I just saw the cutest little puppy in the store window! He-" his eyes opened slightly as he caught sight of the other two, standing a little ways away. "Feli? Is that you?"

"Feli!" Feliks shrieked, and in a second they were hugging each other. "Omigod, Feli, it's been so long! I didn't know you were here!"

"Yes. Ve, I'm traveling with Luddy here!" Feliciano cried happily, snaking his arm around the teacher. He sighed, and blushed, but did not complain. Feliks blinked.

"Okay, wait a minute. _This_ is the teacher you had the hots for?"

Toris spoke up. "Mr Beildschmidt, you mean you were gay this whole time?"

"I didn't know I was," he protested weakly. "I... left the school after I found out."

"So, are you like, living here now?" Feliks asked hopefully. But Feliciano shook his head.

"No, we are in Germany right now, but we just came up for Christmas." He grinned. "Although, we'll still be back in time for the Christmas markets, right?"

"So," said Toris, looking carefully at his old teacher. "You left the school. What about our principal?"

"Yeah," Feliks chimed in. "He was Mr Homophobia!"

"Well, he's still there," Ludwig said, "and he's trying to 'purge the school of evil', but he's fighting a losing battle, especially with Miss Elisabeta running the whole thing."

Laughing, their chatter echoed out across the street and into the crisp afternoon air.

**xXx**

After many promises to keep in touch, Feliks and Toris continued on their way down the street, laughing with each other.

"So, who do you think Alfred went gay for?"

"I'm going to warrant a guess at Arthur."

"Really? I totally would have thought Arthur would get with Francis, but now that you mention it, they did have a lot of sexual tension."

"Mhmm."

They continued walking in silence, fingers intertwined. The sky was already darkening, although it was still early yet.

"Hey, Liet?"

"Yeah?"

"Do you really think that we are the heroes of the school?"

Toris sighed. What Ludwig had told them sounded almost too good to be true, but he didn't put it past Elisa to post the pictures she'd taken of them all over the gay-straight-alliance club walls.

"I don't know, Feliks, but I'd certainly like to think so."

Feliks smiled. "Hey Liet?" he asked again, tugging on Toris' sleeve.

"What?"

"When do I get my Christmas present?"

"...later."

"You said that before, and now it is later! I want my present!"

"All right, all right," Toris laughed. "Learn some patience, O impatient one."

He led Feliks over to a park bench, where he sat down and patted the wood next to him. "Sit." Feliks complied, folding his hands and looking at him expectantly.

Toris chuckled. "All right, hold out your hands and close your eyes."

Feliks looked at him questioningly, but closed his eyes and held out his hands anyway. Toris slipped something out of his pocket and dropped his slowly, letting the silver chain pool in his cupped hands. Feliks opened his eyes and gasped, holding up the pendant in the light.

It was a heart, cit with a line down the middle. On one half, the Polish flag, on the other, the Lithuanian. Feliks turned it over, and on the back was the carved word _Lietuva_, and directly under it, _Polska._ Feliks would have recognized it anywhere, the intricately woven letters, it perfectly matched Toris' doodles he used to draw all over his binder.

"Do you remember the day we first met, and you told me you were Polish, and I said I was Lithuanian? And you said that that was so cool?" He smiled, and tears filled up in Feliks' eyes. "I didn't know what was so cool about it then, but I sure do now."

Feliks threw his arms around his neck, pressing his face into the crook of his neck. "Thank you, Liet," he whispered.

He pulled up, and hastily wiped the tears from his eyes, giggling as he did so. He turned and lifted his hair, and Toris clipped the necklace around his neck. "It suits you," he said softly.

"I love you so much, Liet."

"I do too, Feliks. And I want to stay by your side forever."

Feliks' grin stretched wider. "I think I'd be okay with that?"

"Yeah? Well, good, because I'm never letting you get away."

As they kissed, the sun disappeared, streaking the pink sky with dark blue. The first star shone through, directly above their heads.

"We'll be together forever."

**.:THE END:.**

_**OMAKE – FOR ALL MY LOVELY ROCHU FANS OUT THERE**_

"Hey, Liet, come check this out!"

"What?" Toris walked over to the computer, glancing at what Feliks was looking at while drying a plate. He cringed as he saw Ivan's Facebook page. "Why are you stalking Ivan again?"

"You absolutely have to see this." Feliks pulled up a picture, and Toris nearly dropped the plate he was holding. "Was I right, or was I right?"

There Ivan stood, smiling at the camera, looking a lot happier that Toris had ever seen him, with his arms wrapped around a very disgruntled but no less happy park ranger Mr Wang.

"I told you they would so make a cute couple!" Feliks exploded into laughter, while Toris gaped at the screen.

"I am completely speechless."

"I know, right! It's so hilarious! Apparently, they got together last weekend."

"I don't believe this."

And it says they're going on vacation to..." his voice trailed off. Toris looked at him, fear suddenly in his eyes.

"It says they're going to Stockholm, Sweden."

"..."

"..."

"... Oh, God."

"_MR OXENSTIERNA, SAVE US!"_


End file.
